Swirling Tide, Fanning Flame
by Sentai Red
Summary: In some universe, Sasuke is born female and her name is Saya Uchiha! This is the story of Team Seven, just with Saya. Journey with the three as they become ninja of Konoha, getting stronger, and kicking ass and taking some names! Well, as long as they don't kick each other's asses. NaruxFem!Sasuke
1. Chapter 1

Hey, everyone! Sentai Red here with a story! Yay!

Now, this one will be differing from canon, obviously with a female Sasuke, but not just from that. I'll add additional scenes, maybe even diverge from the actual canon storyline in parts. I'll try to keep it similar, but different at the same time. Hooray for vague promises! But, I do hope you enjoy the story and please leave a review: it helps me out in knowing what you guys think and how I can improve!

Without further ado, on with the story!

* * *

Saya waits impatiently. It's been an hour now and their sensei has yet to even arrive! It's almost 12! She glances at her two teammates as they too seem to be at their wits end. Sakura is just staring at the door, fidgeting, clenching her fist, and one can see a vein pulsing. Naruto is foaming at the mouth, ready to explode at the fact they've been waiting for too long. He is just ready to hit something and, to be honest, so is she. However, she's more composed than that, so she won't – and also she won't be like her idiot of a teammate.

Ah! Where are the introductions? Who is Saya? Her name is Saya Uchiha, younger sister of the rogue ninja Itachi Uchiha. At the age of seven, her brother massacred their entire clan just leaving her as the sole member after his departure. However, unknown to the others, she remembers seeing her own brother shed tears before she blacked out from his torture.

"Stay alive and take care of yourself, Saya..." she swore she heard him say that, choking on his own emotions. This left her entirely confused and curious. After recovering from the trauma, she became aloof and has kept her distance away from her classmates; although she has since become a 'celebrity' in the eyes of her peers, becoming "The Last Uchiha" and "The Uchiha Princess".

She never cared for such titles, though being the top ranking student didn't help her fanbase dwindle – one she wishes would just disappear. Sadly, due to her being a top ranking student, she was forced to deal with Sakura, a fangirl of hers, as a teammate.

To her, Sakura is the example of a kunoichi in the worst way possible: she's vain, loud, and weak. Saya can't stand a person like that! She gives all the _true_ \- in her mind at least – kunoichi a bad name!

However, out of all the people she had to be stuck with as a teammate, it _had_ to be the dead last of their peers.

Naruto is just loud and dumb, always seeking attention. He always goads her into fighting him so he can beat her. He never does and yet he still keeps trying. She acquiesces that he will one day win – she won't tell him that to his face.

"Gah! What is taking him so long?" Naruto yells out, grabbing his head in frustration.

"Naruto, shut it," Sakura responds with an annoyed tone, "you being loud won't make a difference."

'Hmph! That bastard better arrive, I'm sick and tired of waiting for him!' Sakura's inner self raged. Sakura was too prideful to ever admit she agreed with Naruto and wondered how he even passed in the first place. Everyone knew he failed, because he couldn't create a single illusion such as the Clone Jutsu.

And yet, here he is! What the Hell did he do to pass? She wanted to know, but apparently Iruka-sensei was tight-lipped about it! 'Tch, probably just sucked up to sensei and was given it out of pity,' she thought with a tad of resentment, though she shook her head at the notion – Iruka was fair, but wasn't a pushover! He may have felt bad for Naruto, but he wasn't one for charity in that scale.

"Hehehe!" Naruto snickered as he placed the board eraser in between the sliding door, in hopes of it falling on their sensei.

Saya frowns at the childish act, "Do you honestly expect our sensei, a Jonin, to fall for such a dumb trap as that? You're an idiot, Naruto, but you can't possibly be that big of an idiot."

He sticks his tongue out at her, "Blow me, Uchiha," he laughs, "this will totally work, ya know!"

Sakura gets ready to bop him upside the head, "Naruto! Saya is right, you dunce and don't say such a phrase, that's disgusting and disrespectful!" Naruto then winces at the hit and pouts, but doesn't say anything as the sliding door opens up and their sensei pops his head through.

Only to get hit on the head with the eraser, making the chalk dust cover him up.

"Hahahah! Gotcha good, sensei!"

"Oh my gosh, I'm so, so sorry for the idiot, sensei!"Sakura apologizes, blushing embarrassed at her teammate actually doing a prank. He's supposed to be a ninja – not some damn child! 'Hah! Suck it! Your fault for being late!' her inner self mocked.

Saya shakes her head and sighs, was this really their jonin instructor? Some guy with his silver hair spiked up at an angle and wearing a mask covering the bottom portion of his face? He looks odd and doesn't seem strong. What a waste of a jonin spot.

The man grabs the eraser and stares at them, "Hm, it seems my first impressions of you all are…" he trails on, making them wonder what he was about to say, "annoying." He then enjoys their looks of frustration as he points at the ceiling, "Meet me at the top of the academy, don't be late!" he waves as he disappears in front of them!

"That's a cool technique! I want to learn that!" Naruto gushes as he imagines just using it for pranks and overall mischief.

Sakura shakes her head and pushes him along, "Come on, you," ignoring his protests, she kept pushing him. She just wanted the day over with already. Not only did Naruto make their sensei view them all as annoying, she had to wait for the damn guy to even arrive! She just wanted to spend time with Ino and shop before the stores closed.

It was only the first day of being a ninja and she already felt like retiring!

–

"So now that we're all here, why don't you tell me about yourselves?" their sensei asked, leaning against the railings on the roof. He seemed as though he just didn't care in being here.

Sakura spoke up, "How do you want us to start, sensei? Can you start yourself off first and we can follow your example?

Their sensei pondered over it and shrugged, might as well? He knew it wouldn't make a difference either way, although he did appreciate the pink haired girl for asking him rather politely. That's not something you see everyday as a ninja.

"Sure, I guess. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I have some likes, some dislikes, as for hobbies: well, I have lots of them. As for my dream? Hm, can't say I have one," he 'introduced' himself, enjoying their faces scrunching up in annoyance. He can't always give them something that they wanted! It's part of growing up and he just smiles hearing Sakura whisper to her teammates that they only knew his name.

You can't spill out secrets to anyone, Sakura.

"Well, now that I've done my example, how about we start off left to right – so Sakura, it's your turn."

She blinks, blushing at being first and stammers out a quick, "R-right!"

After composing herself, she smiles and begins her introduction, "My name is Sakura Haruno! I like my friend Ino and," she glances over to Saya, "I admire Saya! She's so strong! I also like shopping, hanging out with Ino, and talking about boys!"

Kakashi stares at her with a rather dry look, "What about dislikes?"

"Naruto!" she screams out and Naruto looks heartbroken, but it seems very comedic given his exaggerated face.

"And your future? Any goals?" Kakashi asks once again, hoping it he can continue on.

"Hum… I don't know to be honest." she slowly answers, but shrugs it off. Kakashi nods, she's young, not many will know what they want until later. Despite that, he knows he has a lot of work with her.

'She's more interested in shopping and boys than being a ninja, I'll have to wean her off that and make her focus more on training. I just need her to have a good motivation,' he glances at Saya, who looks disinterested in what Sakura said, 'Saya may be able to motivate her in some way to train.'

"Alright, thank you, Sakura," he chuckles silently at her smile, "next up, Whiskers."

"Eh? 'Whiskers!' Hmph! My _name_ is Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto points at himself with a grin, "I like ramen, Iruka-sensei, and training! I don't like the three minutes it takes to warm up the ramen and my dream," he smiles confidently as he grips his forehead protector, "is to become the best Hokage and make everyone respect me! Oh and my hobbies include pranking and fixing up my plants, I guess."

'He grew up rather interestingly enough,' Kakashi eyed him a bit, but continued on, "Now finally, the Uchiha."

"Hm. My name is Saya Uchiha, I have some likes, but I won't tell you. I have a lot of dislikes like loud, idiots," she ignores Naruto growl at her, "and fanboys and girls," Sakura gave her a slight blush at being referred to as a fangirl, "and my hobby is train. My future is rather an ambitious one, my goal is to restore my clan and to capture the man who ruined my life." She closes her eyes, not caring about what the others are thinking about. She can feel their eyes probing her, but she doesn't care. She doesn't need their approval, nor their care.

'She's _so_ cool!' Sakura gushed at her teammate.

'Wha? She's scary...' Naruto thought with a wary glance and shudders, hoping she doesn't want a goal in capturing him and hurting him in the process.

Kakashi eyes her intently, narrowing his eyes at her declaration, 'I'll need to be careful with her.'

He then stands up and stretches, "Well, I certainly got an interesting set of kids, you're all different in your own ways. Now, on to the details of your test-"

"Wait, what? What do you mean by test? I thought we passed The Academy Test!" Naruto asked loudly, surprised at the sheer notion of another test! He just barely passed one! Now he'll need to worry about another one? He was screwed!

Sakura nods, not expecting another test to become a genin, "He's right, Kakashi-sensei, we were never told of a test!"

Kakashi then begins to laugh, it's a small laugh, but they heard it, "Oh you naive kids, this is no ordinary test; tomorrow, you're going have to do a survival exercise. Of the 27 graduates only 9 will pass. This means only 33% will go on and the rest of you will be sent back to the Academy for another year. Oh and you all have a 66% chance of failing!"

And with that, a sudden realization hit the three hard. They can't fail this! They all need to be genin! Naruto stares at the ground, trembling at the fact of failing! He can't let Iruka-sensei down! Hell, he can't even let Konohamaru down! The brat looked up to him!

Sakura was pale and shook her head, she had to be strong!

Closing her eyes, Saya takes deep breaths, she can't – she _won't –_ fail this survival test. She'll need to train for tomorrow! She then thinks of the two beside her, will they train or will they just cower in fear? She needs strong, dependable teammates! Not some fangirl and an idiot! She needs them to up their game if they want to pass.

"Oh and don't eat breakfast tomorrow. If you do, you might just throw it up. Bye!" he quickly disappears, leaving them to their own thoughts. He just _loved_ scaring wannabe ninja!

Saya stands up, grabbing a blue ribbon from her shorts, tying up her hair into a ponytail, and then stares at the two, "Be prepared tomorrow, I'm heading out to train."

Before she leaves, Sakura goes to her with a pleading look, "How about we train together, Saya?"

"No."

"Hey, Sakura, how about you and I train?" Naruto asks with a grin, hopefully she says yes!

"No."

–

Saya grunts, plopping down on the floor, her blue shirt drenched in sweat, and her white shorts covered in grass stains and dirt. She undoes her ponytail and lets her long hair fall down as she attempts to alleviate the upcoming headache.

'I can't even train right,' she thinks angrily.

She stares at the public training ground she's currently in and attempts to get back up, but her legs collapse under the weight and she yelps, "Ah! Ow..."

'Of freaking course,' she sneers at her own legs, too tired to even stand. She tries to move her legs as she feels a cramp coming, 'Ow, ow, just move them slowly...'

Once freeing her legs from her own weight, she sighs in relief as her muscles pulse and ache. She may not even be able to get home like this, this is going to suck big time for her… At least she'll be fine underneath the stars as it does look peaceful. The night time sky has always comforted Saya, even after what happened to her five years ago. Despite being tortured by her brother during the full phase of the Moon, she still finds it comforting to be under. She closes her eyes, taking in the quiet night and hoping it won't dissipate. Just breathe in, breathe out...

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" - Too late. It seems as though someone was near by and she just sighs: Naruto.

She heard him yell out in pain and sees him fly through a bush, landing near her, causing her to cover her eyes from the dirt being flung into the air. She sees him panting, with many scuffle marks and a small cut on his cheek. "What the Hell is going on?" she asks him with a stern tone.

"Uh, hey, Saya," he gets up as his clones began pouncing on him, causing her to yelp – what the _Hell_ is going on? Why were there so many clo – wait, were these real clones? They were!

She noticed Naruto fight them off, making them disappear in a puff of smoke and after he finishes, he collapses beside her, "Ah, man! That was tough, ya know?" He laughs amused by his own training and he then glances over to Saya, "So, what are you doing here?"

"I can ask you the same thing, what the Hell were those clones?" she pretty much all but demanded.

"Jealous I can make real clones?" she pretty much snarls at his own smug attitude with her and ignores the urge to punch him upside the head like their other teammate; though she certainly feels like doing it. She sighs and shakes her head, making him frown, "What?"

"You're too arrogant for your own good, idiot," she states with a frown.

"Hah! Like you're one to talk, Uchiha," Naruto retorts with a sarcastic laugh.

She rolls her eyes at his attempts to rile her up, she knew she had some bouts of arrogance, but he just took it a notch whenever he did something he found 'cool'. He always liked to showoff, but when it came to her, he would be even more annoying than usual about it.

"Just shut up and leave me alone," she makes an effort to have her legs move, but to her ire they refuse to comply.

Naruto notices and grins, "Need some help, Saya?" He knew he was being mean spirited, but to him she was always acting all cool and thinking she was the best thing since sliced bread! Well, she wasn't! Although, he did stare at her… he did have to admit, she was sort of pretty. He shook his head, he can't think about her like that! She was _no_ Sakura, that's for sure!

Growling, she ignored his condescending remark and fought through the sore and aching muscles. She was an Uchiha! She can get through this! To her amazement she actually stands! It was only for a second until she began to fall, she closes her eyes so she can anticipate the impact, but it doesn't arrive. Instead, she feels fabric cushioning her and she glances up to see it was Naruto holding her, now with a small smile, instead of his usual cheeky grin.

"Heh, worked yourself too hard, eh?"

Instead of the mocking tone he has been giving her, he playfully teases her. Oddly enough, this gives her a sense of nostalgia, but why though? She turns her head away from him, not wanting him to see her blush. She didn't know why she was feeling embarrassed right now, it was only Naruto.

"Where do you live, Saya? I'll take you home," he offers, being gentle with her in his arms.

"I don't need your help, idiot," she knows she's just trying to save face, but Naruto for once isn't buying her shtick and is more amused.

"Sure, Uchiha, sure."


	2. Chapter 2

Hey, everyone! Sentai Red here with a new chapter! Wow, I'm already on chapter two and it hasn't even been more than 24 hours!

Unfortunately, I'm going to state this seriously, I won't always make chapters this quickly and I won't always be consistent with pacing them. I have a job and an upcoming marriage to deal with, so I apologize in advance for any sudden changes in story uploads. Aside from that, I will try to upload as soon as possible, once everything has been proofread and fixed up. Sometimes even my proofreading isn't great, so I'm sorry if stuff slips through the cracks.

As always, thank you guys for reading and leave reviews! That way I know what you guys are thinking about and how to improve on my story! Just don't leave reviews asking when I will update. Those are nice, knowing I have people who like my story, but I want to know _why_ you like it or a specific part of the chapter. That's all I ask.

* * *

Kakashi was no fool, despite his outward appearance; he was always observing his environment and made sure nothing will pass him by. When he was selected to be the jonin instructor of graduates Saya, Sakura, and Naruto, he knew it would be an interesting team.

For one, there hasn't been a two female-one male team since the early days of Konoha's formation, as it was always deemed too chaotic. Now, he was no sexist chauvinist – although many women would claim otherwise because of his love for the Icha Icha novels – so he didn't necessarily agree with those allegations of two women in the team would be disastrous. Granted, there will be exceptions, but there will always be an outlier for something.

You just have to give something the benefit of the doubt.

And yet, he was uneasy. Was it because of Saya? Possibly. He knew that Saya wasn't the most stable person in the team and that was saying something when you have Sakura and Naruto as teammates. Naruto at least has a reason should he ever snap, but Sakura? She was just a sheltered girl that does indeed have room to grow and mature.

He knew Saya despised the two she was forced to partner with and he often wonders if The Third Hokage actually knew what he was doing. He knocks on the door to said Hokage's office, barely hearing the acknowledgment to enter.

"Sir," Kakashi greeted, bowing.

"Ah, Kakashi, thank you for stopping by, I'm assuming you're here to talk about your assigned team?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, said to be called the "God of Shinobi" hasn't aged well in the last couple of years, but he still retains what made him so revered and feared. He had to come back out of retirement when his successor, the Fourth Hokage, sacrificed his life and sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox into his son. He saw through many failures that he knew he could have found a way to evade: the fall of the Land of Whirlpool, the schism between him and a close friend, letting his beloved student escape, and then the death of successor weighs down on him tremendously. Then with the slaughter of the Uchiha clan, he knew his time as Hokage was limited.

"That is correct."

"And I'm also assuming you have some reservations, am I correct?"

A small awkward silence, before a hesitating, "Yes."

Hiruzen muses over the confirmation and chuckles, "I wouldn't put it past you." He lights his smoke pipe and inhales, before exhaling, "They're far from the conventional team and in many regards, I was actually worried about my decision. It's not often you have a three man group with two girls and one boy, but I have faith that should they pass your exam, they will become a formidable group. Just don't let Naruto be a pervert, I don't think he would survive the wrath of both young Sakura and Saya."

Kakashi smiles amused, he may have to tell Naruto to refrain on using the Sexy Jutsu around his teammates. Ah, but where's the fun in that? He'll let him deal with it. All by himself.

Despite the humorous vibe, Kakashi unfortunately had to end it, "Yes, but I'm more afraid of Saya's… mental stability."

Hiruzen then sighs and nods, "Of course, it's still fresh in many people's minds. With all this talk to this day, it makes me worry too. What concerns me though is that I'm unsure of who she is loyal to: the village or her own sense of pride. I won't blame her though as the memory is still fresh, even to me. It still haunts me, Kakashi, a young girl in my arms bawling and screaming for her family. I had to hold her as she fears for her own life. It's something no man should ever partake in, but it happened and it was under my watch."

The pain and the heartbreak, it haunts the old man. He knew it was technically his own fault he wasn't able to find a way to avoid this situation. He still tears up seeing the image of Saya crying real hard, hiccuping and having a nervous breakdown. He remembers her crying, "Itachi! Why! Why! Mama… Daddy! I want my mama back! I miss my daddy! I hate you, Itachi!"

Whenever he sees the way Saya acts, it hurts him on the inside at times and wishes he could tell her the truth; but she seems to be at it herself and it too frightens him. What will she end up doing? Will she betray the Leaf Village over this?

"Kakashi, please watch over her. She is the victim of a long lasting grudge against the Uchiha and a victim of the circumstances placed on her. The reason why I put her with Naruto and Sakura is because those two embody different light to her shadow; Sakura is innocent and sheltered, a girl who will eventually toughen up to the world, but keep herself in the light. Naruto… Naruto is different, he too understands the pain of loss and loneliness and yet he pushes on through. Those two may keep Saya in check."

An uncertain pause, before Kakashi nods and relents, "I just hope you're right, Lord Hokage."

'I hope so too,' Sarutobi thinks, letting Kakashi go from his office. He takes another smoke break and stares out the window. There was a full moon outside.

–

"Ow! Saya, enough already!"

He almost dropped her as he kept jumping on rooftops due to her constant shifting and grabbing his hair in retaliation, he knew giving her a piggyback ride was a mistake! She once wrapped her arms around his neck, choking him because he made a passing remark about her weight.

"Gr, it's your fault! I _told_ you it was the other way, but _no_ ~ you just had to go and get lost in our freaking village!" she snapped, feeling a migraine coming her way. Great. She knew she couldn't depend on the dunce! What made her think he was even remotely reliable!

"Screw you too, Saya! We'll get you home, ya know!"

She sighs, laying her head on his back, breathing behind his back, 'At least he doesn't smell.'

Lessening her stiff arms around him, she turns her head to the village, it was so quiet and peaceful. Unlike her clan compound, it felt serene and felt homely. She never felt this way since the event and even then, she hasn't felt this serenity ever. Always at home did it feel like there was something tense brewing in the air, something she wasn't aware of or wanted to find out about.

Then when Itachi massacred her clan and wept, she knew something was amiss about the clan.

Strangely enough, she's enjoying this feeling wash over her.

One thing does bug her though: why is Naruto even helping her? The two may have been acquaintances once ago, but nothing more. Most of the time they just egged each other on or have her beat him down in spars. He always yelled loudly how he will beat her and how she just calls him a loser, but right now this _loser_ is helping her out.

"Why?" she whispers out.

Naruto glances at her, confused, "Huh? Did you say something, Saya?"

"Why are you helping me? We're nothing more than two strangers that just got assigned together as teammates. Plus, you hate me, so why?" she asks with an inquisitive tone. Her tone slowly grew more agitated at him, but she calmed herself down. What is wrong with her?

Naruto suddenly stops, landing softly on a rooftop and stares into the distance and he mutters his sentence so low she couldn't understand, "Say that again?"

"I said it's because I know the pain of being alone," he started off, but felt Saya tense and heard her growl, he knew he was going to have to explain himself.

"Alone? Naruto, you have no idea – absolutely _no_ idea – what I went through! I don't need your damn pity if you think you and I are the same!" she raged, her eyes giving him a dark glare that he knew he saw once. It was back when they sparred, a week after her coming out of the hospital, that he saw the darkness in her eyes – it terrified him. It still does now.

"No, just listen to me," he pleaded, but she tried to pull away, however his strength kept her at bay.

"Shut up, you idiot," she snapped, squirming even harder while ignoring the pain her muscles seem to be giving her.

"Saya, please," he pleaded once more.

"Let me go, Uzumaki." she growls out as she yelps in pain, ultimately relaxing her body once she realizes she can't pry herself off Naruto.

Sighing, Naruto lets her down before quickly grabbing her shoulders and stares at her. She stares back and the two have a staring contest. Only one person could actually win this awkward contest and it just so happens to be Naruto when Saya turns away, "You have a minute to explain yourself," she mutters.

Not taking this chance to mess up even further, he elaborates, "Listen, I may not know what it is like to have lost your family, but I never had a family – a mother or a father – Hell, not even an aunt or uncle! I always envied you for having such an amazing family, a brother who took you home, a mother that cooks for you, and a father who was a ninja of the Leaf! I had no one, except for the Old Man Hokage!"

She stays silent, hearing him speak. She notices his eyes water, but refuses to shed them.

"I… I have nightmares, about a man and woman dying in front of me, them getting stabbed! Could they be my parents? I don't know, but they tell me they're sorry and I just see it randomly, but it hurts nonetheless! They died and I don't even know who they were! Ever since I knew how to walk and talk, I was always alone, hated and ignored. I never knew why people around me left me or even tried to beat me for something I never did!" his voice wavers, choking at parts and he holds back a small sob.

"When I saw you, alone and hurting, I wanted to do the same to you, make your life miserable like me! However, I knew I can't do that! That's why, and you probably don't remember this, but I do – I gave you my lunch! You were shocked and pushed it away, but when your own stomach growled, I pretty much handed it to you. You just took it and thanked me, giving me a smile that I can't ever forget, and then I went home starving," he laughs softly seeing her surprised face, "but I knew I did a good job and then when you were in the Academy," he looks down, "you scared me."

"… How did I scare you, Naruto?" she asked softly.

"The darkness in your eyes," he stated bluntly, making her frown but allowed him to speak, "you were in the dark, wanting to avenge your clan and fight the guy who did it – maybe even kill him!"

She growls, was he going to judge her on this too? The Third Hokage, great man and all, was against her ideas of vengeance and some of the other ninja even avoid her, giving her some disapproving glances. She did not need this from Naruto!

"I'm not saying you shouldn't kill the bastard, you can do that until the cows come home! Just don't shoulder it alone! Let us be friends and we can get strong together! You, me, and Sakura!"

She stares at him and then prods once again, "Why do you care so much?"

"It's because I just want to be your friend and help you escape the pain," Naruto exclaims.

Her brother told her that to become strong like him, she must kill… but was he wrong? He even cried, not knowing she was still clinging to consciousness! What's going on now! Why is nothing making any sense! She grips her head in pain and Naruto frowns, concerned, "Saya..."

"Urgh. I… I'm fine, j-just let take me home, please."

"… Okay."

Thus starts the silent trek to her house.

It only took 15 minutes to arrive at her home in the speed Naruto was going at, but it felt like eternity for them. The silence ate at them and it made it awkward for them to even speak. Naruto kept cursing in his mind about the whole ordeal.

'I'm so stupid! She's not going to even change just for me,' he thought darkly, wanting to give up. 'She's too stuck in her ways and it won't ever change! I just wanted to help out...'

'Brother… were you steering me away from your advice? No… Maybe… I don't know… Dammit, I hate today!' Saya mused despairingly and looks at Naruto, his own face scrunched up with a frown, 'Naruto… do you really mean it?'

'And why do the villagers hate you?'

–

Sakura ate her dinner with her parents, who gave her nervous glances and this annoyed her, "Okay, what's going on?" she asks them, giving them a small glare.

Her mother, Mebuki Haruno, a chunin, winces but gives her daughter a fake smile, "Oh, you know, just nervous about tomorrow! Your exam with Kakashi will be a challenging one, dear!" Sakura narrows her eyes, not wanting to believe her, but accepts it begrudgingly.

"Right, Kakashi-sensei told us not to eat tomorrow, but I'm not sure… I mean, you just forced me to eat right now, so should I even listen to him?"

"Oh boy, he's already doing this to her, Mebuki!" her father, Kizashi Haruno, a retired chunin, bemoans as he rubs his daughters head, making her huff and swat it childishly.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed! I have tomorrow to deal with and I know Saya and Naruto are going to be asleep, so I must too!" Sakura smiles, pumping herself up for tomorrow. She's going to be strong and become a genin like Saya! Saya then will be proud of her!

"Er, Sakura, dear… just a moment," her mother halts her, "just… just be careful with that Naruto kid… He's dangerous, okay? If he ever attacks you, just let us know and we'll tell the Hokage."

'Naruto… attacking me?' Sakura gives a bemused expression, before giggling, startling her parents, "Oh you guys! Naruto is an idiot! He's just going to be loud and get his butt handed by Kakashi-sensei, I just know it!"

'But why do they look like they're super concerned about Naruto? What did he ever do?' she walks upstairs, pondering. She then notices a paper on her nightstand that reads, "Be at Training Ground 7 at 6 A.M. - Kakashi."

Oh… right. He forgot to tell them before he left. She sighs, was their sensei really that lazy? So much for being a respected jonin.


	3. Chapter 3

Another day, another chapter! Hey everyone, Sentai Red here! Now, this chapter is actually double the length of the first two chapters. Now, with this chapter, I was hoping to have made it like that on purpose. Originally, I wanted the chapters to be around three to four thousand words. However, the first two kind of lend themselves to be limited in scope. This chapter kind of brings out my original idea.

Now onto the chapter, I've never wrote fight scenes, so the fight scenes are minimal. This chapter is showcasing more the nuances between the characters. Remember how Sakura was just a Sasuke fanboy in the original? Well, since there's no Sasuke to really fall in love with, she just wants to admire Saya for her strength. She won't fawn over the female Uchiha like the original and may in fact criticize when the time is right.

Saya is unstable, just like her counterpart, but with her being able to see the tears of her brother, she may not be as bad. But that being said, she's still going to fight her own demons.

I do plan on diverging from the main canon storyline after the Wave Arc. Once the Wave Arc ends, things will start changing. Hell, things already started to change and this chapter proves it! Without further ado, let's begin the new chapter!

* * *

The river flowed serenely, leaves falling down gently causing small ripples across the surface. She mindlessly gazed at the leaves flow down the river, a forlorn countenance etched on her face. Her eyes were red, swollen from the tears she released, a small sniffle still escaping once in a while.

Why, Itachi?

"Foolish little sister, if you want to kill me, you must hate me – despise me. If you want to reach the ultimate level of the Sharingan, you must kill someone dear to you; only then will you be strong to kill me."

She can still remember him holding back a small sob as she was close to passing out. She can even recount his tears streaming down thinking she was unconscious, but she held out for a couple more seconds. Her mind was still going on strong, albeit barely, the torture she was given by the Mangekyo Sharingan and that gave her the time to hear her brother speak out, "Stay alive and take care of yourself, Saya… I love you."

'Itachi… why?'

She threw a rock into the river and it splashed, sinking into the water and she lets out a small whimper, her lips quivering… she can still see her parents lying on the floor motionless, blood splattered all over the floor… she can still see her family be slaughtered like animals… one by one.

The Tsukuyomi, one of the most powerful genjutsu in existence, was used against her and she watched for 72 hours in her mind, the death of her clan… Over… and over.

Then her stomach rumbles, snapping her out of her thoughts as she stares at her belly, rubbing it slowly, "I… I'm hungry," she states pathetically, anxious at the fact she has nothing to eat. She whines, afraid of how she'll survive; she has money from her compound, but she can't use it all the time to feed herself! But she doesn't know how to cook either!

Once again, she became lost in her own thoughts, until a tantalizing scent overtook her senses – food? It smells like ramen! Her mama told her that ramen was nice to eat once in a while, but her dad refuses to ever let them have it. She looks up to see a boy, a spiky haired blond boy with blue eyes and three sets of whisker marks on his cheeks: it's the trouble maker! She always thought he was funny whenever he pranked people, but she wouldn't laugh, she couldn't trouble the Uchiha clan knowing she approved these pranks.

She stares at him, her eyes curiously gazing at him, "Eh?"

"Here!" he exclaims, a grin on his face, pushing the plastic container in front of her. She gazes longingly at the food, but shakes her head, unable to speak. Or rather, she feels as though she can't, too lethargic to even speak coherently.

"C'mon! You can take it, ya know!" the boy pushed on, seeing her cower away from it.

"I… I can't. It doesn't belong to me," she stammered.

"Ah, of course it is! I didn't want to eat it today and I don't want it going to waste, so I'm giving it to you for free, ya know! I'm Naruto Uzumaki and as future Hokage, I want to make sure everyone is happy!" the boy proudly proclaims as he just hands her the food, ignoring her protest, and waves running off.

She huffs, "Jerk."

Her stomach rumbles again and she decided to bite the bullet and began eating the ramen, humming in satisfaction of the taste. While it may not be tomatoes, it's still good! She slurped more and before long, she was full.

"Thank you, Naruto..."

She woke up from her dream groaning, she realized it wasn't just a dream. It was a recollection of what once was the past. A happy memory. She hasn't had one of those in so long, it almost felt refreshing. However, she knew that happy memory wasn't too last long. Unfortunately, she was correct. Right after meeting Naruto for the first time, she got home and slept and began having a nightmare of her brother killing her family again, but what made it different was that Itachi also murdered Naruto.

"You must embrace the darkness if your vow of killing me wants to come to fruition." He coldly stated to her in her dream.

Then all that was last seen in the nightmare was the Mangekyo Sharingan, waking her up with her own screams. It was then that she realized she had no time to make friends, she had to be strong enough to fight Itachi and demand why he he did the atrocious deed. Afterwards, she would then decide if he should live or die – though she firmly believes he should die and suffer in the underworld for all of eternity.

She shakes her head anxiously, there's no time to worry about him right now. First thing to worry about is passing the genin exam and making sure she's fully acknowledged as a genin. Only then will she on her way to getting power.

Her stomach growls and she ponders, should she eat? Their sensei did mention if they ate, they would just regurgitate it back up again and the thought of that was extremely unpleasant in her mind. Hell, even Naruto would have an issue with that.

Speaking of Naruto… it was awkward to even talk about it, things may change. Last night was an event to say the least, it pretty much had Naruto speak his heart out to her, but… can she even take his word? She did remember his nice deed to her, but was that enough to say he knew her pain? He did say he was alone, abused, and left to be forgotten by everyone, but why? What made him hated?

She wasn't one to be part of the gossiping crowd, but she couldn't but overhear most of the time what some villagers would say about him: "demon", "cursed child", "monster", and other words that would be filled with hate and fear. Sure, he was a prankster, loud, and disrespectful, but he that was usually his response to the villagers.

Her stomach rumbles yet again and she sighs, she has to leave before she regrets not eating. She saw a note from Kakashi, writing to her that he forgot to tell them which training ground to go to and she sighs, was this really their jonin instructor?

Oh well, at least she felt better. She knows her muscles are still sort of tight, but not enough to inconvenience her. It will have to do.

–

Naruto wasn't happy, far from it, he had to wake up real early and had to ignore the urge to eat breakfast. Stupid Kakashi! He paused… he knew it wasn't Kakashi's fault – well, most of it wasn't his fault. He still had some blame in the entire thing. He knew he wasn't really happy because of him spilling his heart out to a girl he only knew once as a kid. He shakes his head, was it worth telling her all of that?

'She's too caught up in her own misery,' Naruto thought bitterly.

He knew it wasn't fair to her that she won't change right away, but he was hoping he can at least get her to think about it! She just dismissed him and just limped away from him when they got to her compound. He wouldn't admit to anyone, but her own dismissal hurt him, more so than Sakura denying a date from him.

'Why do I even care?' he refused to answer his own thought. He knew why, but he can't say.

"Huh?" he stares at a paper – it's from Kakashi!

"Be at Training Ground 7 at 6 A.M. - Kakashi."

He stares at the paper, an annoyed expression forming on his face as his lips are pursed up in frustration. Did he legit forget to tell him this? His heart jumps! Oh no! It's 8! He rushes out the door, fumbling with the lock as he also tries to have his jacket zipped up, but it keeps getting stuck!

"Ahhh, not a good start for the morning!"

–

Sakura was far from a patient girl, even she knew it! However, really? Naruto, Saya, _and_ Kakashi-sensei were late! She read the letter, she didn't eat, she didn't even eat her dinner all the way, and now she's the only one here? Is this some sort of sick joke?

She crosses her arms, pouting. At least it was quiet. It was peaceful and she knew she had to just accept the solidarity until Naruto arrived. The loudmouth would probably ask her for another date and when he gets rejected, he would whine. At times, it's funny seeing him so childish, but most of the time it's annoying. This may be on the annoying side when it comes around.

That does beg the question, why do her parents fear him? He can't even hit a fly! Yes, she knows the expression is "x wouldn't hurt a fly", but considering it's Naruto, she will bend the expression just a bit.

At the sound of foot steps, Sakura turns her head and smiles, "Ah, Saya! Good morning!" she greets jovially.

The raven haired girl stares at her and then sits down against the stump, looking away, much to Sakura's disappointment.

'Oh, she's still very cold to us… just give her some time, Sakura,' she tells herself as she then harrumphs, now it's Naruto's turn to arrive wherever he is.

And then speak of the Devil, Naruto is jogging over with a hand stretched out waving to them, "Hey!~" he extends his greeting and then slows down to a brisk walk, "Is Kakashi-sensei even here yet? I thought he would be here already! I got scared thinking I was late to the training exercise!"

Shaking her head, the pink haired girl sits down, pouting, "No. He's still not here and I've been here since 6. Ugh!" she groans out, stretching before rubbing her stomach, "Man… I'm hungry."

The three stood in relative silence for the next hour, their patience slowly deteriorating as their stomachs roared in hunger. During that time, Sakura notices the tense atmosphere between Naruto and Saya. Naruto glances at Saya, then harrumphs and looks away. Saya just sucks her teeth, rolling her eyes, muttering to herself, "Idiot." The two seem to be at ends with each other and she has no idea why.

Their stomachs growl and things descend even further. They haven't eaten and it's getting worse! Growl after growl! Their moods shifting quickly to anger and soon enough, after waiting for long enough for their sensei, one exploded and it was the most obvious of the bunch. He stood up and roared, "Where the Hell is this bastard! Dammit, sensei! Get over here!"

"Oh, I'm already here," Kakashi spoke, behind all of them. This caused them all to jump in fright, backing away from the man as he eyes them with an amused expression, though one couldn't tell by the mask. He chuckles and waves at them, "Yo."

"You're late, asshole!" Naruto and Sakura yelled, pointing at him rudely.

He gives off a sheepish laugh, rubbing the back of his head, "Ah, well you see, what had happened was that as I was heading over here, a black cat was in front of me and walked across so I had to go the long way."

The three felt their veins pulse in anger, their eyes twitching, and soon enough the three all just shouted, "You suck at lying!"

Instead of actually responding to their accusation, he merely smiled and walked in front of them, pulling out two bells out of his pocket. This action confused them as they stared intently at the bells, "Uh, sensei, what are those two bells for?" Sakura asks, calming down.

"Thus begins your survival exercise, these bells here are your gateway tickets to being a genin," he jingles them for effect.

"Huh, wait, sensei," Sakura interrupts him as the other genin look at her, "there's only _two_ bells." She points out, causing her teammates to glare at Kakashi. What is he planning?

"Excellent observation, Sakura," he praises, "she's right. There are only two bells. The goal is to get these bells from me. It's already 9 A.M, you have until noon to get these bells, the person who doesn't get the bell or does the least amount of effort will be tied to one of these stumps." He points at one at the three stumps near them and smiles, moving away to show them containers full of food, "And then watch as the rest of us eat lunch!"

'So that's why he made us starve,' the three thought, catching themselves drool and wiping it away.

"But wait," Sakura interjects, "what will happen if we don't get the bells?"

"Oh, you know, you all go back to the Academy and repeat the year," he responded.

He then pulls out a small alarm clock and begins to wind it. He then places it down and looks at them, "When I let it go, you must all come at me with the intent to kill. That will be the _only_ way you can even have a chance of getting the bells."

Naruto laughs, "Oh real funny, sensei! We all know you couldn't even escape from my prank yesterday, this will be easy!"

Kakashi wasn't interested in the attempt of an insult and gives a lazy rebuttal, although one can tell it was laced with some mocking, "Says the boy that failed three times and constantly shouts in order to hide his own inadequacies. You know, those that boast the most tend to die the first."

The goading got to Naruto and he snarls, pulling out a kunai and charges straight at his sensei, much to the shock of Saya and Sakura. Before any of them can stop him, they gasp as Kakashi is behind Naruto already, holding his wrist with one hand and having his other arm around the boys neck, "Whoa, whoa, I didn't even say start!" Kakashi admonishes mockingly.

He releases the boy and returns to where the clock is and nods, "At least you have the intent. Now, when I unwind, you begin," the three crouch, ready for anything.

Unwinding, Kakashi yells out, "Begin!"

Saya and Sakura tactfully retreat into the shadows, masking their scent, much to Kakashi's approval, 'Good, they're hiding their presence and waiting for the moment to strike.'

He was about to wonder where Naruto was, but he didn't have to. The moment he turned back to the field, Naruto stubbornly held his ground, much to Kakashi's ire, "You're not really cut out to be a ninja, eh?"

Naruto gives him a cheeky grin as he proclaims, "I'm gonna kick your ass sensei, ya know! I'm going to get those bells and become a genin!"

In the top of the trees, hiding behind leaves, Saya frowns at her idiot of a teammate leaving himself out in the open, 'Stupid, stupid, stupid! What the Hell is he thinking? He can't take on a jonin out in the open like that!' She notices Kakashi pull out something and tenses, is he going to take on the knucklehead with a weapon? He can't be serious!

Naruto notices and tenses, what will he take out?

Sakura frowns, 'Oh no, this is going to be ba – huh?'

The three just stare exasperated at their instructor: he took out a book. He opens it from a bookmark he left inside and begins to read it, much to Narutos chagrin. Naruto then notices the name of the book, "Icha… Icha… Wait! I know that book! The old man reads that! Why are you reading it right now when we're doing the exercise!"

To further piss of Naruto, Kakashi doesn't even look up from the book, "Well, to know what's going on, obviously. Oh and you know," he shrugs, "it's not like you're smart or strong enough to give me any challenge at all."

Taking the bait, Naruto charges and begins to throw his weapons at the guy, only for Kakashi to just dodge them as if it was nothing. For him, it was! He was a former member of the ANBU, this was nothing but child's play!

Naruto throws a kick, aiming for the head, only for Kakashi to duck. The whiff causes Naruto zoom past Kakashi, but he twists his body to land on the ground and throws himself off the ground. He aims his right hand to punch Kakashi, but Kakashi just grabs him using his left hand and throws him. "I guess we can begin our first lesson: Taijutsu. Hand to hand combat. While you have strength behind those punches, you fight like a thug – no grace, no tact; just hoping to whatever God you pray to that your punches and kicks will knock out your opponent."

'He's right, Naruto only did decent in Taijutsu because of his strength, but it wasn't enough to be even remotely good against Saya or Kiba,' Sakura muses to herself as she watches Naruto struggle against the older man.

"Grr, I'll show you!" Naruto threatens as he runs, making Kakashi shake his head. The boy will never learn.

He anticipates the boy to throw hands yet again, but to his small surprise, Naruto starts to slide on the ground. He used his own velocity to begin sliding! Then, thinking he got Kakashi by surprise, he bent his knees and slammed his hands down to propel him, thrusting his feet to Kakashi's stomach!

He landed a hit!

The joy was then short lived as Kakashi grabs him by the ankles and smirks, "You got me there, that almost hit me. Now it's my turn now." He drops Naruto, before the kid can recover, he kicked him away. Naruto gets up, feeling a bruise forming on his side, but he hears someone whisper in to his ear, "Behind you." It was Kakashi!

Saya and Sakura pale as Kakashi is behind Naruto, crouching, and with the Tiger handsign to boot!

Not wanting to see Naruto get burned up, Sakura gets up from her hiding spot in the bush, "Naruto! Move! He's going to kill you!"

"It's too late now," Kakashi's eye glistens as he screams out, "Konoha's Forbidden Technique: A Thousand Years of Death!" He stops right before as Saya throws out kunai and shuriken at him, making him drop the technique and push himself away, "Oh, man… I really wanted to do that," Kakashi whines.

He then stares at the exposed genin and smirks, "I see you," he states as he vanishes before their very eyes! Cursing, Saya runs off, running from tree to tree – she has to hide!

'Crap! Crap! Crap! The bastard was just using that opportunity to make us show ourselves! He had no intention of killing Naruto and now I just lost the element of surprise!' Saya thinks anxiously, not paying attention to her surroundings as one of the tree branches she lands one snaps from the sudden weight. She yelps as she lands ungracefully.

She gets up and sighs, luckily no one saw that.

"I give you a 9 for the effort, but a 4 in the landing," Kakashi teased as he appears behind her. She turns around, a kunai in one hand and she grits her teeth, waiting for an opening.

"Now, Naruto almost got me just a moment ago, and I have yet to test out Sakura, but I've been wanting to try out a lesson with you: Ninjutsu," Kakashi put away his book, "I also believe I may have to put this away for you now."

She smirks, "You're still underestimating, huh?"

He shrugs, "Yes, well, you're still wet behind the ears, so I shouldn't really _over_ estimate you."

'Oh you're going to regret that,' she then charged at her opponent and jumped up in the air, throwing her kunai. Kakashi throws his own in retaliation and the two collide, but hers still went on as his died down.

'Smart, she used chakra to throw it,' Kakashi praises as he sidesteps.

With him sidestepping, her plan was set, she throws shuriken around him. She kept throwing shuriken around him, intentionally missing at some throws, but it was enough to throw him off as he got backed into a corner. He notices and clicks his teeth in annoyance, did he really fall for this?

Where did she even go? He feels the tree shake as she jumps down, landing in front of him and throw a punch. He grabs her wrist, but she uses that moment to jump and kick him square in the chest! She just did a Naruto move, but this time he actually got hit! He winces in pain, but pushes her away when she twists her body downward in an attempt to grab the bells.

With the needed space, and in a sense of desperation, she then uses the tiger handsign before making more, screaming out, "Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!" This act startles Kakashi as he stays frozen in place.

'Impossible! No genin should enough chakra for that sort of jutsu!' he panics.

The flames escape her mouth as a huge swirl of fire races toward him and all of a sudden, the area he was just in explodes. The entire is singed and she glances around – left, right, behind her, above her – and no sign of Kakashi! Where did he go?

She feels a grip on her ankles and she pales – he was below her!

Before she could do anything, he pulls her down to the earth, only leaving her head above ground. He smiles, crouching down to her, "Oh my, you did well in this lesson. Hell, you did well with that little tactic of yours. You were right, maybe I did underestimate you a tad much. Now just stay here and I'll deal with your little friend, Sakura."

When he disappears, she growls, "Dammit, this guy is really pissing me off."

–

After bringing to light her whereabouts, Sakura ran off in another direction, zigzagging around the forests in hopes of losing Kakashi. Naruto may have been a dunderhead, but he at least got close to hitting their instructor. Sakura laid low for a while, but almost let herself scream in fright as she heard an explosion nearby.

Was that Saya against Kakashi? Oh, no.

This left her at a quandary, should she go help out Saya or should she stay low? She knew Naruto was out of the question when he disappeared on them after Saya saved him from a humiliating attempt of a joke.

She slowly leaves her hiding spot and whispers out, "Saya? Where are you?"

"Psst," she jumps and sees Kakashi behind her, "yo."

Before even giving out a scream in fright, Kakashi just does a single handsign and her vision slowly blurs. She couldn't even hear him say the jutsu as even her own hearing was impaired! She then blinked and saw nothing was amiss… what just happened?

Groan…

What was that!

She pales hearing a deathly groan and creeks her neck slowly to face whatever was groaning and to her shock, it was a dying Saya! Saya was full of kunai embedded into her back! Blood was seeping everywhere! Her hair was disheveled and her clothes were torn to shreds!

Groan…

Again!

A minute later, Naruto pops out of a shrub, just as bad as Saya. He looks up at Sakura, making her want to vomit, he was missing an eye! He was just bleeding out from where his eye once was! His neck was slit and he was barely breathing!

"W-why?" Saya croaks out.

"W-why didn't you save us?"

Naruto dies in front of her.

She screams.

Kakashi stares at her as she passes out from the terror and sighs, maybe he overdid it. However, she should have known it was just a genjutsu. "Lesson three: Genjutsu. I guess maybe I should have started it off simple for her. Oh well."

He leaves her there to recover. No point in babying them.

After about eight minutes, she began to awaken, jumping up to her feet as she twists her head in fright, wondering where the bodies of her teammates went. She takes a second to relax herself, taking deep breaths, and frowns muttering to herself, "Genjutsu. Not fun at all."

Their sensei was not going easy on them. What was the point of all of this? Only two could pass he said, but… wait a minute! Only _two_ could pass this? That makes no sense! She hasn't seen a two man group led by a jonin ever! Not even Iruka-sensei told them about this! What was Kakashi-sensei thinking! Was there some ulterior motive?

She kept wracking her brain, trying to find out, but exhales a small huff when she couldn't find the answer. Maybe by talking to Saya she may find out.

–

Oh, he was just livid.

Disappointed too, but mostly livid.

He was gripping Naruto by the back of his jacket, lifting him up so they can be at face level. Kakashi just couldn't believe this brat would even _try_ to eat the food laid down by the clock! Did he think that he could cheat the system like this? Well, think again!

Naruto was shaking at the dark look Kakashi was giving to him and stammers, "I'm, uh, sorry?"

Kakashi then knocked out the boy with a swift chop to the back of the neck. When the boy lost his consciousness, Kakashi lifted him up over his shoulder and began walking to one of the stumps. He then places him on the stump and ties it tightly.

'Shinobi do lie and cheat, but I'm not going to encourage sabotaging yourself from achieving an attainable goal like that, Naruto. For now, you're going to stay here until time runs out.' Instead of disappearing using the Body Flicker Jutsu, he casually walks away. No time to do so anyway, the clock was about to ring.

–

Why do her teammate suck so much? She couldn't even bother giving any form of reaction when Sakura fainted in front of her thinking she was decapitated! Any other time, she would have at least released a small chuckle, but this- this was just embarrassing!

She forced herself up from the jutsu and slightly tapped Sakura's cheeks, waking her up.

"Saya!" she cheered, but Saya ignored it as she moved her head around to find any traces of Kakashi.

"Hey, uh, Saya," Sakura hesitates, not knowing how to present the information, "don't you find it strange that Kakashi-sensei, he – uh, I mean – maybe he has lied to us? Maybe the goal _isn't_ to get the bells."

Saya shakes her head, "Does this even matter now?"

"Eh? What do you mean?" asked a befuddled Sakura.

"Nothing. Let's just go." she demand, but Sakura stops her. Sakura grabs her wrist, but not with enough of a grip to cause uncomfort, just enough to get her attention. "What? What is it now, Sakura?" she rudely asks, her patience running thin.

"Uh, uhm…" Sakura stammers, cringing at the dark glare being given to her, "What about Naruto?"

"Who cares about him? He means nothing to me." Saya bluntly states.

"Are you sure? I don't think so, Saya," Sakura contradicts, "I think you're upset with him. You and him are even more tense than usual and I know you're always annoyed with him, but why are you two upset with each other?"

That small question just freezes Saya, her own hard stare morphing into a somber gaze. Sakura doesn't know why she's upset… Hell, even she doesn't know why she's upset. Was it because he tried to butt into her life? Was it because she doesn't know how to feel about Itachi? Her hand twitches and a small pain in her head emerges; she ignores it.

Seeing that Saya is unable to answer, she decides to rag on Naruto, "I mean I guess I can understand why: he's loud, always wanting attention, rude, and doesn't know when to stop! I swear, I just wish he would stop asking me out! I wonder how his parents would feel if they saw him the way he is, if he has any! I bet they just ran off, because I would too if my son was a disappointment like him. I can see why my parents view him cursed."

Sakura ignores the trembling Saya, her anger rising with every word, clenching her fist and gritting her teeth. Sakura feels bad for ragging on Naruto, but some of it does hold true to her, he is loud and doesn't know when to stop asking her out on a date. However, she surprised herself when she kept talking, 'Am I just talking or nonsense or am I actually… ranting how I really feel…'

Before she can feel bad about it, Saya yells, "Shut up!"

This makes Sakura flinch, but for some reason, she fights back, "Why do you even care? You and him just hate each other and I know he annoys you too! The two of you kept eyeing each other all morning! You both looked like you wanted to hurt each other! What makes today any different!"

A pregnant pause. She was right. Why did Saya even care?

"It's because I just want to be your friend and help you escape the pain."

She remembers Naruto's heartfelt words in her mind and she closes her eyes. The pain kept coming back and she just grips her head. Itachi's words kept resonating in her mind, but it's also being in competition with Narutos. She holds back a whimper as the two keeps fighting in her mind.

"Saya?"

"Gr, shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Saya roars angrily and she holds her head, thrashing around.

Then the alarm rings.

The two regain their focus, one eyeing the other with remorse and the other having her eyes closed, panting, her throat dry.

"L-let's go..." Saya dryly stutters, walking away, attempting to regain her composure.

"R-right."


	4. Chapter 4

Woooow, this is going up quicker than expected!

Hello everyone, Sentai Red here with another chapter! I'm guessing you're tired of my introductions like these, huh? Doesn't matter, we have a brand new chapter! Now, thank you all for some nice comments! I appreciate them all!

This time the chapter finally finishes the team exercise! Will they pass or fail? You already know the answer, as it would have been a very short story. Plus, I gave away the fact we're going to the Wave Arc at some point. Oops!

Now, the romance will be a slow burn, but it will be there. Something will cause it to ignite! But what will it be?

Anyway, enjoy the new chapter! Leave me a review how you feel and let me know how I can improve!

* * *

Stirring, Naruto wakes up, quickly shutting his eyes from the sudden exposure of light. He groans, trying to move his arm to cover his eyes… but he can't! Jolting, he squirms, but realizes he's tied up and forces his eyes to open up. He looks down to see the rope wrapped around him and he looks behind him: he was tied to the stump!

Great… and all it was because he took the bait.

Not once. Not twice. But thrice!

The first time was when he saw the bells on the floor and whooped, running to it. What he didn't notice was that there was rope on the ground and when he stepped over the rope, it pulled him up by the ankle. He yelled obscenities for being caught by such an obvious trap.

He then cuts the rope and falls down with a flip. However, Kakashi anticipated this and there was _another_ trap and it then caught him into a second rope. Now he was dangling, yet again and this time, he dropped his last kunai.

Kakashi then berates him for falling for such obvious traps. "You really need to learn how to not fall for these traps. The point of being a ninja is to always look underneath the underneath."

Naruto then retorted he already knew that. It was a total lie, but it was his own defense mechanism and it was just habit. Kakashi called him out on it and told left him alone, telling him to not do anything stupid. But Naruto being Naruto, he just flat out ignore his teacher, and saw the food on the ground.

And now, he's tied up to the stump!

Kakashi was waiting for him to mess up and he did just that! 'I'm an idiot,' Naruto thinks with a deadpan countenance. It doesn't help that there is a sign posted on top of the stump stating, "I, Naruto Uzumaki, attempted to cheat and eat the food but my gracious and good looking sensei stopped me and now I'm tied up in retribution for my sins. I humbly apologize."

What makes it worst is that Saya and Sakura are glaring at him with disappointment after reading the post. He doesn't know what's worse, Kakashi fooling him three times or disappointing Saya and Sakura. One question was stuck in his head: what happened between the two of them?

The moment they came back to the open field they were walking with scowls on their face. Sakura walked a head of her, arms being crossed, and a small huff escaping her lips. Saya narrowed her eyes and turned away, sitting to the right of Naruto whereas Sakura took his left. Then they read the sign and put their attention to him, making him uncomfortable under the judging gazes.

A puff of smoke emerges with Kakashi walking out of it, his posture still carrying the hint of laziness the students are associating him with. He looks at the three and smiles, "Well, I guess I have some news to tell you all."

They stare at him with an inquisitive look.

"The good news is that: you're not going back to the Academy after all," he cheers, making them think they passed. They too began to cheer, with Naruto hollering proudly, Sakura jumping up and down excitedly, and Saya giving off a confident smirk. He then drops the megaton, "What's going to happen is that you're all going to be permanently dropped as shinobi!" he exclaims angrily.

The kids all stop cheering and yell out, "What!"

He glares at them, shutting them up, "None of you are of the right mind when it comes to being shinobi! You're all disgraces to the name and should just drop the notion of being a ninja!"

Saya growls, grabbing her kunai, and charges after Kakashi much to Sakura and Naruto's surprise. She doesn't make it far as Kakashi pins her down effortlessly, her face eating the dirt and her struggling to get free, "Let me, urgh, go," she demands as she bites her lip in pain when Kakashi tightens his grip on her.

"Sensei, let her go, please! You're hurting her!" Sakura pleads with a terrified face.

"No, this is going to be a lesson for all of you," he coldly denies, pointing his gaze at Sakura, "Why didn't you help out Naruto once? Why didn't you ever go to find him? You fell for a simple genjutsu, a genjutsu _you_ should have been able to escape from! But no! All you wanted was to find Saya and just insult Naruto as if he was nothing!"

Naruto turns his gaze, saddened hearing what he said and when he said Sakura look down in shame with tears in her eyes, he knew she wasn't denying any claims. His own musings were cut short when Kakashi barks at him, "And you, Naruto! You're a knucklehead with no sense of tact, no sense of respect, and no damn idea what it's like to be a ninja! You're so reckless and naive – If you keep that up, you're going to be nothing more than a liability or the death of your teammates!"

Naruto frowns, looking away, obviously hurt.

Kakashi continues on, "And you Saya, you may have helped out Naruto once, but you never capitalized on that! All you care about is your own self-interest! You fight, argue, and demand but never give something in return! You're an arrogant, angst-filled girl with nothing! You keep this up and you're never going to be strong enough to fight him!"

She stops fighting and closes her eyes. She doesn't have the motivation anymore to escape his grasp.

"You three are a disgrace to the ninja on that memorial," he points to a monument with names of many shinobi carved into it, "those people are heroes, those that gave their lives: ninja of absolute worth and deserve the respect for what they have done." Images of his father, his teammates Obito and Rin, and his sensei Minato all pop up in his mind, but he quickly pushes it away for now.

Naruto looks down, ashamed of the fact he ate right in front of the memorial. He knew Kakashi was staring him down, he could feel it.

Sakura nods, a small sniff escaping her.

Saya doesn't say anything at all.

"Sakura," Kakashi calls out, "you were the only one to have nearly figured out the point of the exam."

"What was it, sensei? I thought the point was to grab the bells off of you and only two of us can pass the exam!" Naruto questions.

"That's partially true, but there was an underlying theme of this exam and she," he points at Sakura, "almost had it. But she lost the point when she insulted you."

"I… I'm sorry, Naruto… I just… didn't know what came over me when I said those," she apologizes, but Naruto shook his head, giving her a small smile. He wasn't one to hold grudges, but he knew he cant just forget what she did, even if he didn't hear it firsthand.

There was an uncomfortable silence looming over the field as Sakura shakily rose her hand, Kakashi acknowledged with a grunt and she meekly responds, "Was it… was it teamwork? Was that the point of the exam, sensei?"

He nods, "Yes. The answer is teamwork. You three wouldn't survive in the battlefield or on missions together if you couldn't cooperate as a team. For example, if I were to do this," he pulls out a kunai and points it to Saya's neck, freezing everyone, "I would force you Sakura into a death dealing conundrum: either you kill or Naruto or Saya dies."

He gets up, giving her a chance to breathe properly as she gets up slowly and walks back to her teammates. He probably must have sat on her a little too rough, but oh well. It was lesson time, so he did what he had to.

Should he give them another chance? Well, normally he does, he usually gives teams one more shot and this one should make it or break it. He hands Saya and Sakura a container of food, nodding at their tiny voices of gratitude. Right now they're all mentally exhausted – good.

"Now, I'm giving you all one last chance. Saya, Sakura, you two can eat. But," he glares at Naruto, who stiffens, "you don't get to eat. You just watch and suffer. I will be back, but under no circumstance are you allowed to feed Naruto. Should you do so, I will be back with full vengeance. Got it?"

They all nod and he disappears.

The two girls slowly ate their food, enjoying the food, much to Naruto's envy. He tries hard not to whine, but his pout is heavily pronounced. He tries to turn away, but no matter which direction he looks, he always steals a glance at the food nearby and his stomach growls in anger.

Sakura closes her eyes, an internal conflict rising within her. Should she feed Naruto? He's annoying, yes, but he's her teammate. She also said some real awful stuff about him, stuff she's glad he didn't hear about. Yet her sensei just forbade them all from feeding him. Was this also part of the test? She didn't know.

Decisions, decisions.

Having enough, and thinking this will clear her conscious, she gets up, putting her food near his face, "Just open your mouth, Naruto."

Naruto blinks, "Eh? Uh, Sakura… you shouldn't… Kakashi just - "

"Listen, I know what he said," she snapped, her patience running thin, "just eat. He's giving us a second chance and we'll need you at full strength. I don't eat as much as you, so you'll need it more than I do."

He smiles gratefully, "Ah, thank you, Sakura! This means a lot," he opens his mouth to accept the food.

Then the rope snaps, causing Naruto to slide down the stump and land on his butt, causing him to rub it in pain. He glares and stares at the culprit, "What was that for, Saya?"

Saya rolls her eyes, "Listen, you know you can't just make her feed you, at least feed yourself. Screw what Kakashi said, despite you being a moron and trying to eat, you're still needed to help fight against the lazy, one-eyed bastard. Besides, eat mine, Sakura didn't even attempt to eat hers. Let her eat hers to get enough energy. I'm fine eating half of it."

Naruto notices that she was right, Sakura didn't even a sizeable chunk of her food at all! He would feel bad if he did and she starves further because of him. He wasn't on her good side at all, so maybe making her eat something would be better. He nods at Saya and grabs her container, "Er, thanks, Saya."

Before he even attempts to eat the food, the sky darkens and wind starts blowing heavily. Sakura shrieks, covering her face as the winds hit her hard. She wobbles and is almost blown away, but Naruto grabs her and pulls her and Saya close to him. It was all instinctual and he narrows his eyes, wanting to still see what the Hell was going on.

Saya sort of froze from the random action, sort of shocked someone would go out there way to defend her. Why? Why was he doing this? She could handle herself! She tried to pull away, but the wind blew harder and she unintentionally put herself closer to Naruto, having his arm around her neck and head to cover her from the harsh winds.

Smoke arose from the ground as Kakashi angrily pops out, " _What_ did I just say!" He yells out, forcing them all to shrink. He doesn't even give them time to recuperate as he yells out, "Well? I'm waiting! I told you all to not feed Naruto, but no! You all disobeyed a direct order! What do you all have to say for yourselves!"

Bringing enough courage to fight back, Saya gets up, her eyes glaring harshly at Kakashi, a spot of red popping up, "I'm Saya Uchiha and I don't give a damn about your direct order! You want us to fight at you all at once? Well, we needed Naruto! Whether you wanted to or not, we went out our way to feed him so he can help us out!"

Inspiring the other two, Sakura stood up as well and points at Kakashi rudely, exclaiming, "Yeah! You may be our sensei, but not even a moment ago you told us we should act like teammates! Well, you're a hypocrite if you think we will eat while Naruto suffers!"

And then Naruto states his peace as he walks in front of the girls and spreads his arms out in defiance, "Yeah, screw you sensei! They wanted to help me out like a real team! If you think you're going to do anything to them, you're gonna have to go through me, ya know! We're a team!"

"Oh, you're a team now?" Kakashi asked mockingly, his hands slowly forming a handsign, making them all tense. Was he going to outright attack them?

"You know what I think?" he asks them menacingly, the skies darkening and they all crouch, ready to fight.

"You all pass!" the skies clear! The hurricane type winds passing through just vanished, leaving no signs they were there. Their befuddled faces quickly make him amused as he smiles at them proudly, 'They did it!' he praises in his mind. They are the first team to ever be passed by him!

"Wait, I'm confused," Naruto stammers, "what was the point of that?"

The other two nod in confusion, wanting to know what just happened.

"Ah, see, that was also part of the test. See, I wanted to see how you all behave knowing this was your last chance. If none of you went out your way to defend each other or offer food to one another, I would have failed you all and sent you back to the Academy. But, because you all acted like a team, I decided to pass you all!" Kakashi cheekily remarks.

He gives them a moment to cheer for their own accomplishment and raises his palm up to silence them, taking a somber tone, "Remember one thing: we're a team now. Each of you must do your best to help one another. Take what I said about our fallen comrades to heart, they died heroes because they valued their friends and family. Remember this phrase: 'Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their teammates are worse than trash.' From now on, we will be known as Team 7 and in two days from now we will begin our missions!" He gives them a mighty thumbs up, much to their pleasure.

He smiles, "You're all dismissed. Tomorrow, come back here at 9 A.M. for our first day of training."

Once he left, Naruto smiles and stretches, "Well, congrats to us three for passing! What do you guys say we go out to eat at Ichiraku's Ramen! My treat!"

Sakura thinks, "I wish I could, but I promised my parents I would come by to eat with them afterwards. I, uh, appreciate the offer." She apologizes and leaves. Saya just starts walking, making Naruto grunt in annoyance.

"I guess you don't want to go either?"

She looks at him, "We need to talk."

–

Naruto leans down against a tree, panting, his own jacket on the floor all battered and dirt-ridden. He wiped the sweat from his brow and drinks the water bottle near him. He sighs in relief as the cool water refreshes him.

"Man, you're strong, Saya," he praises.

She doesn't respond as she evens her breathing, calming herself. The adrenaline was still pumping, but it would only be a matter of time until it goes away. She too drinks from her water bottle.

She was lean, her light skin glistening from the sweat, but giving her a shine that Naruto would never dare admit outloud. To him, she was breathtaking; no – she _is_ breathtaking. He just wouldn't admit it.

One question does pop up in his mind though, what did she want to talk to him about? When he was forced to visit the training grounds provided by her abandoned clan compound, she immediately started sparring with him! She was a rough one! She never relented with her attacks!

But neither did he! He fought back with everything he had! They traded blow after blow! Usually he was afraid of hitting girls, but he knew in the line of battle, sexes meant nothing. Saya even mocked him for his chivalry, but it didn't irk him. It wasn't malicious at all nor was it meanspirited. It was just a playful tease… from an Uchiha. A girl, but an Uchiha nonetheless.

"What did you want to talk to me about, Saya?"

His question made her wake up from her own musings.

It was needed to be said.

"Listen, I," she swallowed nervously, but regained her voice – why was this so difficult to do! - "I needed to talk to you about the other day."

Oh, great. This talk. Naruto grimaced at her dismissal that time and thought she was going to call him out for it.

"Before you say anything, Naruto, I need this to be said," she states seriously, though one can hear the anxiety seeping out, "I thought about what you said and I'm… I'm not going to lie about this, your words affected me all day."

This wasn't something he was expecting. He watches her move, her once calm and cool composure now riddled with small, albeit cute, fidgets. She plays with her hair and twirls it with one finger, her eyes looking down. This isn't easy for her.

"My… brother Itachi, when he… you know… murdered my family, he tortured me," she admitted. This spooked Naruto, she was tortured! No wonder she was so messed up! She continues, "And yet, when he was leaving, I saw him tear up… he wished for me to live well… it's strange."

He stays silent. She gives him a small smile, so he does know when to shut up.

"When you told me how you felt, how you wanted me to be your friend, it made me think that… maybe I was wrong."

His eyes widen, but he lets her go on.

She closes her eyes, "Maybe I was wrong, but I don't know what I'm wrong in. Is it the way I go about it? Is it my vengeance? Is it my actions? Tell me, Naruto," she stares at him, her eyes hard, but no hint of darkness he fears, "do you really care?"

Taking a deep breath, he nods, "I do. You're someone I wanted to be friends with, despite your less than… great attitude." He didn't want to call her a bitch, but she had those tendencies to be nearly called one. This is what happens when you deal with a girl at the Ichiraku Ramen who tells you what to never call a girl. She can be scary when she gets her point across.

She scoffs, amused, "Oh please, like you were any better."

He laughs, "Point taken."

Their stomach growls and Naruto laughs, "Guess we need to eat!"

She gives him a deadpan expression, "We're not eating ramen, Naruto. Come on, I'll… I'll make you some food." She turns away, a blush forming on her face. Was she really doing this! She is just being a nice host now… she did force him to spar with her. She could at least make him something to eat.

"Hehe, sure!" Naruto accepts gleefully, oblivious to her plight.

'This idiot is going to run me dry,' she muses with despair. She leads him to her house and narrows her eyes, 'He and I still need to talk more, but for now… I guess dinner is a good way to… break the ice.'


	5. Chapter 5

Here we are! Back again!

I am Sentai Red and welcome back to another chapter! Things are going to be a lot different here! We're expecting a megaton! Am I hyping you guys too much? Yeah, pretty much. I don't know if I should. I think this may go a tad fast, but it's going to change the dynamics between Saya and Naruto! For better or for worse. Now, I won't be able to update as often as I did, because work is getting to me and I haven't had the time to write. So, I apologize for any infrequent chapter updates. I apologize in advance.

Let's begin the chapter! Please leave a review to let me know what you think and how I can improve!

 _Adieu_!

* * *

"Cherry Blossom here, standing by."

"Raven here. Ready."

"Sunshine," an annoyed sigh, " _here_ for orders."

"Good. This is White Wolf. Are you all in position? How far are you all from the target?"

Cherry Blossom was the first to respond, "We are currently about 7 meters from the target." Obviously, they were using a codename to hide their identities, but the quest was far from the normal kidnapping quest. Oh, no. Many found this to be too excessive for what they're doing.

All of a sudden, a black figure sprints away! Its eyes gleaming as it zooms past them at incredible speed! Sunshine growls and yells out, "Screw this, sensei! I'm heading after it!"

Naruto, no longer using his codename, chases after the figure… a small, panicking meow – was it really? - was then heard and Naruto hollered, praising himself, "Hah! Got the damn thing!" However, he then started to cry out in pain as the beast, now known to be a small grayish cat was clawing at him with intensity. It kept shrieking and hissing at him as it kept clawing him with all its might. Naruto winces in pain, but holds his ground.

The two members of his group appear behind him and Sakura smiles, "Blue ribbon around its neck – got it! Sensei, we got it! We got Tora!"

'For the 18th time in a damn row,' Saya thought with a small twitch of her eyebrow. She couldn't understand _how_ this damn cat kept eluding them. They were at this for at least an hour and it was getting annoying that they did this mission _constantly_! Why was this cat always running away? Her musings were cut short as they heard on their intercom that Kakashi was praising them for catching Tora in a – did he really just say this? - record pace!

What the Hell made this cat so damn special?

"You know what Sensei! Screw you and screw this cat! Ow! Ow! Stupid cat!"

She would have imagined their sensei being blown away by the shouting and she seemed more amused than annoyed. Did she show it? Of course not. This is Saya after all.

Two nights ago, the events were very… interesting to _Saya_ the least. Ignoring the stupid pun, it was true! If one somehow traveled back in time to tell her that she would be eating with the deadlast at her home – alone to boot – she would have kicked their ass for daring to even say such drivel! Alas, fate had other plans.

–

'Am I… really having a boy in my house… what would my father even say? Well… what _would_ he have said?' she wondered to herself as she was prepping food for her and her guest. She never really took her cooking seriously, it was just never necessary since she just imagined her food should just suffice in keeping her alive and nourished. Granted, it did take her a while to overcome the obsession of nothing but tomatoes in her food. She knew she can't have just one type of food for the rest of her life.

Surprisingly, Naruto was sitting down patiently and silently. He wasn't making a ruckus? He was being polite? What was even going on here?

She wasn't wrong. While Naruto was seemingly calm on the outside, the inside of his mind was a completely different story. In reality, he was anxiously curious how to even act in another person's house in this way. It wasn't always common for him to ever join someone to eat as a guest. He usually ate at Ichiraku's Ramen with someone and they just ate ramen without care.

This… No, this was the exact opposite of his idea of eating together. He wasn't used to a more intimate dinner; especially between him and a girl. Granted, it wasn't just some girl, but it was Saya! She and him have a special relationship – is it even a friendship? No, it wasn't – but it's a far cry from just two days ago!

He groans quietly, 'This is worse than the morning, at least it wasn't this awkward,' he mused.

Back to Saya, she was proudly staring at her dish – it looked good! Again, she wasn't much of a cook, but when she did her best – she can damn do her best! She just made herself some onigiri as a snack for the two of them an appetizer and then made vegetable tempura with the tentsuyu – she even made the sauce correctly! - and oyakodon! The cookbook to her right enticed her to make some and she can't complain about it; it smells and looks delicious!

'Okay, gonna say it now,' she thought with a small amount of trepidation. How will Naruto react to her cooking? How will he respond to her finishing cooking? She shook her head, why did she even care? She was making him food! He should be thankful in the first place!

Inhaling, she was ready to call out that dinner was ready. She just hoped he liked it at the very least.

"Naruto! Food is done."

He jumped, getting up to help her with the food. He knew at the most he wanted to help her out with making the table. She looked surprised.

Once the two finished making their plates and setting the table, the two just muttered, "Thank you for the food."

Her hand was trembling – his was too – as they slowly ate the food.

Then their eyes widened.

… Well?

Naruto then spoke out, his voice slowly rising, "This is amazing! Holy crap!" He began scarfing down the food with fervor. He practically inhaled his food! How did he stay thin? That's one interesting question to ask.

In Saya's opinion, she too liked her food! It may not outrank her absolute favorites, but she wouldn't mind making more at some point. She too ate her food with fervor, but with a lot more control than the boy next to her. She gave a small smile as she ate – she wouldn't admit this, not ever, but she did enjoy this for what its worth.

It was better than being alone.

–

Her own musings were interrupted when the team arrived to the Hokage Tower. It was a massive building that overlooked the village and was a beacon of strength, aside from the Hokage Monument it was in front of.

The Hokage was the face of the village and, despite being an old man, still retained what made him revered and even feared by many. Even she knew he could probably kick all their asses without even breaking a sweat.

Naruto tapped her shoulder, making her look at him, what did he want?

"Hey, you okay? You've been spacing out, ya know!" he stated bluntly, but not loudly. Kakashi was ahead of them, followed by Sakura. Said girl seemed rather to be in peace as she held the cat in her arms and the cat seems to be enjoying the attention. To Naruto, he wished the cat would just suffer; that little demon just enjoyed hissing at him or claw him whenever he got close.

Saya shrugs off his concern, "I'm fine. Let's pick up the pace."

He doesn't seem to believe her, but he relents. There's no point in arguing about things with her, especially when she's stubborn as a mule! He ignores the hypocrisy of his own musings as he's aware of the phrase "The pot calling the kettle black."

He stares at her back as she rushes herself in. Girls are weird.

–

'On second thought, maybe I was being too harsh,' Naruto deadpanned.

Sakura and Saya, surprisingly enough, felt bad for the cat. What was happening before them was awful! The three now found out as to why the cat kept running off. Normally, they usually just threw the cat at the caretaker, but now they're in front of the actual owner! She was the wife of the Daimyo, a Great Lord, the one who essentially ruled over the Land of Fire in which they all resided. She was a rotund woman, a woman who clearly enjoyed the eloquent and lavish lifestyle many yearn for.

"Oh~ my little Tora~" she sung out, cuddling the poor kitten to death, "Mama misses you~!"

She turns to the three kids and smiles happily, "Oh thank you so~ much! Once again, my little Tora is safe in my hands!" The three kids meekly bow, not wanting to be rude to the woman who can literally ruin their lives if they dare speak out of turn. Kakashi was more than amused at them.

"Ah, it's no problem to us, Madam Shinji," Kakashi politely dismissed, "It's just what we're meant to do as servitude to you and our Lord Hokage."

"Oh! Kakashi~" she sung out, "You've gotten so big! You _must_ come by at some point and eat with us again! Lord Hokage must come by too! I swear, my husband misses his Go matches with him!"

He simply laughs sheepishly, "Haha, yes, of course," he bows to her.

Amazingly enough, she hugs him and _lifts_ him up! The kids, stunned, just stare and watch as she crushes their sensei _and_ her cat at once! They even hear Kakashi's strained breathing and attempt to pat her back!

"Well~ I must be off! Tell Lord Sarutobi I wish him well and that I paid double for your troubles!"

"Of course, Madam Shinji," he gasps out in pain, "thank you for your generosity."

She lets him go and bows at them all, leaving with her terrified cat in tow.

An awkward silence permeated the Hokage Office.

Naruto broke the ice, "Well, sensei, never knew you were popular with the ladies like that." Such a simple tease caused the girls to blush and hold back their snickers. Kakashi looks at him bashfully, scratching the back of his head with a nervous chuckle.

"L-let's not go too far with that, I was a simple a ninja that was tasked to help them against an insurrection. It's been so long that I assumed they long since forgot about me," he explained humbly.

"I just hope we don't have to deal with the cat again," Naruto groaned and his two teammates nod in agreement. After doing it for this long, they wanted a change of pace! They'd rather mow lawns or paint fences again than catch the – No. No they didn't. They were lying to themselves and they knew it!

"I want something different," Saya muttered, "I'm tired of these pathetic missions!"

Sakura sort of felt ambivalent to this: sure she despised these easy missions and found them boring, but was she even ready for anything after them? These past few days, she never really did much to train and it shows in her sparring lessons with the others. Kakashi once ordered them to spar one on one, but Sakura could never last long in these sparring matches.

It was always Naruto or Saya that blew her out of the water and it _sucked_.

Aside from the missions and the 18th time of catching Tora, she never did any of her own training. Was she even useful as a member? Of course, if you were to ask Naruto he would blindly exclaim she was. While sweet, she knew he would just say it out of kindness. If she were to ask Saya, the answer would be obvious.

Here's the thing: she's been thinking about this since the bell test Kakashi made them do. His words haunted her, but she naively thought she would just get stronger doing these missions. The spars then happened and she turned a blind eye to it. Now… now she's just scared to change.

If they were to do a C-Rank mission, she was sure they'd be fighting bandits! Can she even hold her own against one? She knew Naruto and Saya would be there, but for how long? How long can she stay behind them, always relying on them? Things need to change.

"Well, I see you all did a wonderful job of catching your target," the Hokage praised.

She shook her head of her thoughts and paid attention to the Hokage, but one thing stayed in her mind as he spoke, 'Was he really strong? Man, he's so old if I were to sneeze at him, he may just die of a heart attack.'

Kakashi flicked her head discretely and whispered, "Don't think badly of the Hokage, Sakura. Pay attention."

"Y-yes." How did he know!

"… and of course, your money has been wired to your funds. Now, onto another batch of quests, Iruka if you may?"

Iruka appears from behind them, scaring Naruto, and uses a clipboard to read from a list of missions available, "Well, we have Mrs. Kabuki needing help with weeds invading her garden, The Higarashi family needing their weapons polished and their store cleaned, Mr. Ishinomori needing assistance in carrying his manga drafts to his publisher, The Asahi family needing babysitters, and -"

"No!" Naruto shouted, crossing his arms to form an 'X'.

Saya shook her head, "What the idiot is saying is that we need better missions than these menial chores and I agree with him."

Naruto stares shocked, but grins knowing he has someone to back him up on this! He then feels a fist make contact with his head as a small bump arises and he nurses it, tears popping up. "Ow..."

"Naruto, you idiot! Don't be rude and Saya," Sakura turns her scolding from the boy to the raven-haired girl, "don't agree with him!"

Iruka growls at the insubordinate boy, "Naruto," he snaps, "you know these missions are meant for genin! You three aren't allowed to hit higher ranking missions yet! Kakashi, I'm surprised you're letting him even act out like this!"

Kakashi sighs, "Why am I being scolded for this knucklehead?"

"Now, now," Hiruzen mediates, "as amusing as this is, I do have to wonder why you two think you're both capable of doing C-Rank missions?"

Naruto stares in defiance of the Hokage, "Cuz! Saya and I are strong to take on anything thrown at us! We're not just some wet behind the ears genin, old man!" He ends his little tirade with a pout, amusing the old man in front of him. Not really the best way to prove a point.

Hiruzen then plays along, "Oh? I don't think so, Naruto. Just because your team isn't as 'wet behind the ears' compared to some, you three aren't ready for higher ranking missions just yet. It's not because I don't trust you all, but because these missions are meant for chunin, the next rank up from genin, and while some genin do it, they have to have been a ninja for at least half a year to have the trust to do these. You've all been a genin for barely a week."

He takes a puff from his smoke pipe and exhales, "Remember, these missions are there for us to grow and learn how to work together. D-Rank pose no risk for genin like you all and I intend to keep it that way. They're also a good way for you to build a rapport with this villagers – let them know you do these 'chores' as a duty to them and have them know you're dependable and someone they can trust and look upon as a ninja of worth."

Naruto stood silent at that last sentence and narrowed his eyes. That underlying message. Fine. The old man had a point, but that doesn't mean he has to like it. Not wanting to make it look he's been affected by the sentence, he just harrumphs childishly and looks away in disdain, "Fine."

Since Saya was right next to him, she noticed his face contort. Although she didn't call it out, it did pique her interest. 'What are you hiding, Naruto?'

Kakashi notices the atmosphere tense up and smiles, "Well, now that's out of the way, I think we should take a break from missions and focus on training. We did enough of these missions to give us enough money to last us quite a while, so I think we shouldn't be greedy about it."

"An excellent idea, Kakashi. You're all dismissed."

–

"It's," punch, "not," punch, "fair!"

One last punch.

"Gah!" he cried out in pain, his knuckles bloody and his hands full of splinters. His entire body was screaming in agony from his own training session. Kakashi did train them all and taught him how to fight properly. It sucked because he was used to just slugging people and make them fall with one punch, but Kakashi retorted that fighting recklessly can cause him to tire out or leave himself wide open to a counterattack.

"Face it, Naruto, your taijutsu is lackluster and the only reason why I almost got hit by you was because I wasn't expecting your style of attacking. If you were to train the proper stances, I'm sure you would land one hit on me."

He was angry.

He was angry at Kakashi.

He was angry at the Old Man. He's constantly treating him like a child! He's not Konohamaru! He can handle harder missions! He just doesn't see it! No one does!

He lowers his arms and gazes at his dirty palms.

No… He's not angry at them. No. He can't lie to himself. He's just using them as an excuse to get angry. He closes his eyes angrily, feeling the bitter tears hit his eyes, he can't cry now! No! He hasn't cried in a long time! He may be angry, but he's not letting himself wallow in pity!

He roars and continues punching the stump.

"I," punch, "can," punch, "become," punch, "stronger!"

He roars and punches harder than usual, causing the stump to splinter. He reels back from the pain and falls down on his butt to the ground. He pants, wiping the sweat from his brow. 'I think… I think I need to talk to the Old Man...'

"Naruto," he turned to see both Saya and Sakura walking towards him. Sakura running over to apply medicine on his hands. He winces at the ointment being applied, but a swift glare from Sakura shuts him up from complaining.

"I know things weren't looking the best for us," Sakura began, "but I think it's best if we took things slow."

Was she about to lecture him too?

"Let me finish, Naruto," she firmly stated, "I know… I know it's hard doing these simple to do tasks, but Lord Hokage is right. We're just starting. I spoke to Saya and even she's coming to agree with me. I think the two of you were too impulsive and arrogant," she ignores Saya's glare, "I think we need to work first as a team and get stronger first. Before you say anything, I know I'm… weak. I get it. Try not to say I'm not because I am. I spoke to Kakashi-sensei and he believes we should train together more often and he even gave me some advice!" she smiled at the last bit. He told her how to maintain a proper diet of eating the right amount of food, the type of food, and how to work off the excess. He mentioned to her that by her being a ninja, the excess fat would go away and she wouldn't have to worry about being a muscle bound freak as she feared.

"That's great, Sakura..." Naruto trailed, smiling at her.

She smiles, patting his arm as the bandages and ointment have all been applied as she spoke, "Thank you. Now, I believe I must head off. Mom and dad are probably wondering where I am. I'll see you guys tomorrow." She waves at both before leaving.

Once she has left their field of view, Naruto turns to Saya, "I don't think you really mean it, Saya." His accusation just causes her to harrumph.

"If it means keeping her from whining, then sure. However, I do see her point in this. I just don't want to participate."

He growls, "I just don't understand you."

She glares, narrowing her eyes and clenches her fist. "And what do you mean by that?"

"I mean you're being all social to me, you even fed me! Now, whenever you and I talk, you brush me off as if I'm nothing. You told me that maybe you were wrong in your decisions and your beliefs, but it's like you didn't even attempt to change!"

"Change isn't easy, asshole!" she snaps.

"No it isn't, but god dammit, you're not trying! Sakura is willing to change! She believes she's the weakest member of this team and is trying to change that! I don't think she's weak, but she does. She's willing to change! I don't see you doing anything to change yourself!"

"Oh and like you are?" she asked mockingly. She sneers at him, mocking him, "At least I didn't throw a damn tantrum at the Hokage when asking for a C-Rank! You're moping around, hitting a stump, and feeling down on yourself because of what he and Kakashi-sensei has said! You're nothing but a damn hypocrite! You never once shown yourself to be adept at being a ninja and you just want to throw yourself at the Hokage like a child in hopes he listens? News flash, I don't think that's how it works!"

He clenches his fists, but not enough to weaken the bandages wrapped around him, "Yeah, you're right. I shouldn't have done that! But hindsight is 20-20 and I calmed down now!"

She rolls her eyes, "Yes, because overexerting your body is _so_ calming. Listen, I'm not here to argue about this. As it is, I don't want to participate in this little sham of her teamwork buildup, but I'm going to have to. If this will be something I can change for myself, then so be it. Just don't you dare preach what you yourself can't do."

Receiving no answer, she shook her head, "Listen, I'm going to be honest with you," she catches his attention, "if this teamwork exercise of hers works, then I will concede in the fact you were right in that I am not willing to change. I've been the way I am for so damn long and the thought of changing isn't a pleasant image in my mind. I'm going to do this, not for you, not for Sakura, but for me."

A small nod leaves Naruto as he gives her a small smile, "That's all I want," he then gives her a cheeky grin, "You're just a tsundere then? You're acting like you don't want to, but you're gonna do it because you like us now!"

She throws a rock at his head, making him laugh, "It's not like that, you idiot!"

He continues to laugh merrily, much to her irritation. She sighs before giving a small smile, maybe she was afraid? Afraid of getting close to somebody. Who knows? Even she doesn't know her own emotions anymore, however she's still extremely skeptical about the exercise. She had to give it to Sakura, despite being a fangirl, she was actually willing to change for the better - a trait something worthy of respect.

Speaking of trait, she noticed early today he was grimacing at what the Hokage has said, especially about the villagers viewing 'him' as dependable and whatnot. It's like the Hokage was actually saying that to him specifically. With Naruto just staying silent, it further proves her hypothesis. It's to no surprise too that she has been observing how some of the villagers treat Naruto with disdain. It's as if he's cursed to them. Is that why he acts the way he does? No parents and a lot of people afraid or hateful of him?

She wanted to ask him this since they first spoke… well, properly spoke to each other… she held back out of respect, however since he forced her hand – now she must force his.

"Naruto," she softly said his name, "why do the villagers hate you?"

She notices him freeze up, his eyes widening and he subconsciously puts his hand over his stomach. She catches on and presses on, "Tell me. You made me spill my secrets. It's only fair."

He shakes, "I… Uh… I don't know what-"

"Stop _fucking_ playing dumb, Naruto!" she yells out, "I know they are afraid of you, I know the Hokage said the last statement specifically to you!"

She then kneels down to him and looks at him straight in the eyes, his bright blue eyes to her dark, black eyes. She did have to admit, his eyes are rather nice to look at. It's not always you have bright blue eyes like his. Ino Yamanaka has them, but hers don't compare to his.

She sighs and softly states, "If you're cursed, I don't care. You told me you care for me as a friend… If you want me to view you as one… then… you're going to have to let me in. I may… I may not be as soft as Sakura, but… I can be an ear for you. This can't just be you shouldering everything, Naruto. Let someone help you too."

"I… Okay."

He gulps audibly and trembles, "If-if I tell you… d-do you promise… n-not to tell anyone?"

"I promise."

Her words rang in his ear. No hesitation. No wavering tone. She carried a steadfast gaze. If she can be like that, then so can he. He takes a deep breath and gets close to her, putting his lips near her ears. He ignores her tensing up, a small shudder escaping her. He whispers something so small that she barely heard it, but she was able to piece it together.

"I'm the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox."


	6. Chapter 6

Hahahaha! Holy Hell am I one _Hell_ of a liar!

I didn't expect myself to continue typing right after I got home from work and finish it all! Now I'm exhausted! But hey, a new chapter! I didn't expect it to come out so fast! I guess Chapter 5, despite being incredibly rushed I will admit, got my creative juices flowing once again! Now, I'm still going to apologize in advance. I still will publish stuff infrequently and they may take longer than usual.

This just happened to be the exception.

I'm sorry! But anyway! On with the show! Leave reviews on what you think and let me know how I can improve!

 _Adieu!_

* * *

If there was anything Naruto would rather do is just be home, eat some ramen, and forget about today – but _no~_ he can't! He just can't. Spilling the secret he shouldn't dare spill was one thing, but to spill it out to his teammate who he has mixed feelings for isn't the best thing to have done!

She's staring at him.

Stare, stare, stare. Wow. Honestly, if the situation wasn't awkward or tense, he probably would have just waved his hand in front of her face. Right now, he's shaking. Absolutely shaking! Why did he just let her pressure him into revealing a secret – a punishable to death secret at that! - to her? What was he thinking!

Oh, right. He was forced to.

Remember kids, don't let yourself be pressured to do something that can affect you negatively. It's not worth it.

Back to the situation at hand, he gulps and gently taps her shoulder. He did that early today and it seemed to have worked, maybe it will work again? He taps her shoulder, but no response. He then shakes her gently – nothing. He wants to pout in frustration, but he remembered reacting the same way as she is doing right now. However, he stopped when Iruka protected him from a giant shuriken being swung at him by the traitor Mizuki.

"Saya," he calls out her name.

All of a sudden she wraps her arms around him. His eyes widen and he's left to wonder – should he hug her? He was never much of a hug-y sort of person. Not because he was an asshole, but because he was never given one as a kid to really know how to reciprocate one.

She sobs.

He freaks out.

"Whoa, whoa – Saya!" he panicks, grabbing her by the shoulder as tears cascade her face. Her bangs sticking to her face. She is crying for him! What the Hell?

"I-I never knew…" she muttered, wiping her tears, a small whimper still escaping her.

Was this really the Saya he knew?

"I-it's nothing, Saya, really..." he lied. He just didn't want to have her worry. Apparently, it was the wrong thing to have been said as she glares at him indignantly. He winces as she roughly grabs him, pulling him close to her. The intimacy lost on the two of them.

"It's 'nothing?' Nothing! Don't bullshit me, Naruto! This isn't 'nothing!' You can't just tell me that with a straight face!" she exclaimed angrily. Naruto was just left confused.

She frowns, a thoughtful gaze being sent to her. He didn't believe her – and truth be told, she couldn't blame him. She just manipulated him to reveal an awful secret and she's just yelling at him for saying it's not that big of a deal? No. She's not trying to manipulate him further! She didn't expect this! He may be a loudmouth idiot, but that doesn't mean anything! 'He's no demon,' she thought furiously.

"You're no demon," she repeated, this time out loud for him to hear.

A pregnant pause.

"I'm sorry," she mutters. He puts his hand on her shoulder, a small smile etched on his face. She closes her eyes, "I shouldn't have made you spill that out."

"You didn't know it would be that," he defends her, "and yeah, I sort of made you spill your secrets out first. It wasn't fair you had to but I didn't."

"How long have you known?" she whispers, afraid someone might be hearing.

"Honestly? Just a few days ago," his answer leaves her confused and he notices, "it began the day we had our genin exam at the Academy. Remember how you all passed, but I didn't? Yeah, I still couldn't do the Clone Jutsu. However, that night I learned the truth." He looks down, his pride is sort of telling him not to tell her he was tricked into stealing the Forbidden Scroll.

However, if he knew he wanted to show a sign of trust, he relents, "Mizuki, our former sensei, tricked me when I was completely down. He used me. He used me to steal the Forbidden Scroll. He told me that if I were to steal it and meet him near the outskirts of the village, he would pass me. However, Iruka-sensei caught me first and that's when we found out Mizuki was going to betray us. He then let out the secret and told me… well, you know… the fact I had a demon sealed in me."

He bitterly chuckles, "It's strange, ya know? Knowing now why I was hated, why I never had anyone adopt me, why I couldn't be friends with anyone – you included. I was always ignored. I was always hated; always feared." He rubs his stomach, "I can't help but feel sorry for them."

She sneers, "You feel sorry for them? Naruto, you should be angry! You should be asking for vengeance! They've done you wrong and you're just going to let it go?"

Giving her a sad smile, he whispers, "What good would that do? It'll just make them think they were right all along. I once thought of doing that… when I was like 6 or something." He snorts out a humorless laugh, "It was something, alright."

Seeing the inquisitive glance he continues, "I was so tired of it all that one day… I was seeing a boy and his father play… they saw me and they glared at me. I was just thinking, 'I want to end it. Stop glaring at me. Stop or I'll kill you!' and when they tried to shoo me away, I grabbed a rock and ran at them wanting to bash their heads in… but I tripped," he barks out a small laugh, "and they laughed! Instead of hating me, they were amused by me! I… I liked that instead… I wanted more of it and…"

"That's when you became a prankster," she finishes for him. He nods.

"Yeah, I became the class clown and… it got better, but not by much. I once told the Old Man why people despised me and I never got a straight answer from him… I resented him for that, but when I found out… I knew he had a good reason to hide it..."

"..."

"I'm not smart; I'm loud, brash, and I'm constantly messing up. Just now, before you guys came along, I wanted to talk to the Old Man… and apologize. I wanted to apologize to him for acting out, he puts up with me, ya know? Sometimes I think he shouldn't, but he does… Then when he dismissed me, I knew he was trying to put me in my place – I just had to," he stares at the broken stump, "let out all my anger…"

She closes her eyes, "You're an idiot."

He gives her a cheeky grin, "I forgot to add that."

She smiles softly, "Yes, you did. Now, I… I know we never had a good… acquaintance-ship – is that even a word? - Er, anyway, I… I think we can start anew…" she blushes, looking away. Was she really going to do this? They just argued no less than 10 minutes ago and now they're getting chummy! If this were some manga, then the author must really suck at writing. She wants to snort out loud, a manga? What kind of loser reads manga?

"Sure! I'm Naruto Uzumaki and I like pranks, ramen, my new friends, my team, and manga" well, who would have thought, "I dislike the time it takes to boil ramen, not being able to garden, and vegetables! Oh! I forgot to mention that I like your cooking!" Did he just say that!

"My hobbies include pranking and training, as well as gardening and reading manga! My dream is to become accepted and then become Hokage!"

She sighs, "I guess I can do this… I'm Saya Uchiha… I, er, like my own cooking too," wow, not too narcissistic, "uh… I guess I can tolerate you… and Sakura… and Kakashi," she ignores his small snickering, "My dislikes are… well, you know that already." She doesn't want to say, but Naruto rubs her hand.

"Just say it. If we want to become a team, at least for Sakura's sake, we need to work out everything…"

"I guess. Erm… I despise my brother, Itachi, for the fact he murdered my clan. I despise the fact I'm too weak to have done anything… I hate him… I really do..." she forces herself not to tear up, but she chokes out her last few sentences as a result, "I… I train and cook for my hobbies and my goal is… is… capture him and force him to explain to me why he killed our family… and if he doesn't then I want to kill that son of a bitch!" she spews out as she clenches her fist.

"I'll help you," Naruto assures her.

"Why?"

"Because, you're my friend now and I want to make you happy. I like it when you smile, ya know? It means you're willing to take the better route than wallow in hate and loathing like that bastard wants."

'Take the better route than wallow in hate and loathing?' she thinks to herself. Was Itachi trying to tell her the same thing? Why was this all confusing. Her brother can't just tell her to do something when he says the exact opposite! He wants her to hate him and kill him! But… he wept for her! She remembers him saying to live happily and well! What the Hell did he mean!

This is all too confusing!

"Hey, hey," Naruto comforts her, "don't grab your head like that. Come on, I'll take you to your house. I think we both need to rest… okay?"

"Hnng, okay..."

He hoisted her up and comments, "I like your hair."

"W-what?"

"Yeah, it's nice and dark. It kinda reflects the moonlight! It's also pretty smooth too, ya know? For such a hardheaded ninja, you seem to take care of yourself like Sakura!" he teased her all in good fun.

"Idiot… don't say such stuff," she huffs, but plays with her bangs in response. She had her mother's straight her mixed with her father's sort of spiky hair. She was sort of jealous Itachi had straight hair. It was a lot easier to deal with.

"I'm just saying."

–

The night quickly turned to morning.

Sakura was the first, as per usual, to arrive at the training grounds. She stares at her medicinal pack and smiles, ever since she got this from her parents, it made her realize she can be a true benefit for the team. Obviously, the intention of the gift was far different than she was going to use it as, but hey – you must adapt!

Her parents, especially her mother, always worried about her and thought this pack would help her alleviate any injures she may sustain. She loves them and appreciated the gift, despite their constant nagging.

Last night was quite an ordeal, after Naruto rampaged all around the training ground, she took care of his wounds. It felt right to do. She may not have the most amount of chakra nor the perfect body to perform jutsu or fight for long periods of time like her two teammates, but she does have the chakra control and knowledge to help out with dealing with wounds.

When they were given a quiz on famous kunoichi, she wrote about Tsunade Senju: a woman who's medical prowess was unmatched and her physical strength was nothing to scoff at either! She was a woman who can kick your ass to the moon and then heal you as if nothing had happened.

'I want to be like Lady Tsunade,' she thought to herself, smiling as she opens the pack and examines the insides yet again.

'Perfect, I have enough aloe vera ointment for rashes and other wounds, I have soldier pills for rejuvenating ones body long enough, I have blood pills for temporary fixes for blood loss, enough bandage wraps, and so many more! Wow! Mom and dad are awesome for this! Now, I can be useful to Naruto and Saya.'

She was no fool, despite Saya agreeing, she knew it would take the girl quite a while to fully invest into being a team.

Speaking of Saya – there she is! She walks, but what's interesting is the way she's walking. It's as if she's unsure… insecure… shy? This is different than usual. Granted, they haven't spent much time talking, mostly because said Uchiha kept blowing her off.

"Uh, good morning, Saya," Sakura greeted.

"Hm? Oh… good, er, morning, Sakura," Saya awkwardly responded.

Getting off the ground, Sakura walks to her, "Is everything alright?"

"Er, yes… I just… I just need to talk to you," Saya almost begs. Now this is getting interesting. What is happening with this girl? Sakura, despite her flaws in admiring the Uchiha, knew Saya wasn't perfect. She was cold, rude, egotistical, and volatile. Yet it didn't matter to her, it made her seem human. That doesn't change the fact she kind of irritated her at times.

"Oh? What is it?" she eggs her on.

Taking a small breath, the raven haired girl begins, "I… I would like to… apologize for everything," she said lamely.

Sakura takes a moment to realize what's happening – Saya – _the_ Saya, the same Saya that she saw as cold, rude, egotistical and volatile – is actually apologizing? In what universe did she land in? Is she in the right dimension? What's next: Naruto is actually a girl named Naruko? What a lazy name, but still!

She just can't wrap her brain around this!

"What are you apologizing for anyway?" she just had to ask this! She might know the answer, but it would make her feel better if the girl in front of her would explain it!

"Ugh… I guess I have to," Saya groans, "I guess… it's because I've been rude… and dismissive of you and Naruto. I guess you were right in some way, we have to work together. Uh… I'm not good with apologies… but yeah?"

Narrowing her eyes, Sakura doesn't buy it. Is that all she's saying sorry for? No. If she was truly sorry, she would go out her way to do so! "Uh-huh, yeah, right," Sakura scoffs, much to the annoyance of Saya, "and why should I believe you? I mean, you've been rude to us since we became a team. All you ever done was fight with us and treat me like I was trash. You know, I looked up to you! I thought I could become like you: strong and reliable! But I saw that you're not what I have imagined, you're just a sad, little girl that can't escape her past!" Ouch, okay, Sakura – maybe a tad harsh there.

"..."

She doesn't let up, "And you know what? I may have been rude to Naruto, but I at least apologized to him! I know he's loud and can be a dunderhead at times, but when you berate him you just drag him down! You don't attempt to help him! When you get rude to me, you make me feel like I'm just the worst member here! You make me afraid of proving you wrong and it hurts me! You're no teammate! That's why I want to do this exercise: to prove you wrong and to make us work together! But you're so full of it! You can't even give me a proper apology!"

"What do you want me to say," Saya yells out in frustration, "that I'm sorry for being the way I am! The way I was tormented? I know! Naruto and I spoke about change! I'm afraid, okay! I haven't had anyone try to get close to me like you two! It's concerning to me because I don't know how to act normally! Ever since that incident, everything around me has changed for the worst! And don't you _dare_ say I'm no teammate! I at least don't hit the idiot for anything stupid he does! I may have spat at him, but I don't leave him injuries just for being himself!"

"Oh don't you dare! I know I'm not perfect and I accept that, but you always made yourself seem you never needed us!"

Saya growls, storming towards Sakura who stood her ground, and the two were having a glaring contest. Saya with a sneer, teeth baring, and her pupils contracting in anger. Sakura narrowing her eyes, her green eyes cloudy with anger.

"You want to go at it?"

"Thought you never asked!"

The two jumped back, getting into fighting stances. Saya placing her left foot forward, holding her arms out with her hand straightened out in a chopping gesture, arms over her face and chest. Sakura merely had one hand out in front of her protecting her face and leaning forward, left food forward and her body low.

Sakura then charges at Saya, a right hook! She aims her right hook at the girls face!

Saya merely pushes Sakura's wrist away and palms her hard in the chest, causing the pink haired girl to wince. Not giving her the option to continue, Saya grabs the girl by the wrists and pulls her to her. She then knees Sakura in the stomach.

"Ugh," Sakura grunts out in pain, loss of breath noticeable.

Saya snorts, "Is that it?"

Sakura lunges at Saya's midsection and causes the girl to almost topple over. Not wanting to let go, Sakura kept pushing at Saya's midsection, making the Uchiha girl lose her traction. She then notices one thing: she's being lifted off the ground! Caught in a moment of surprise, Sakura then suplexes her!

Saya's back hits the ground hard and she grunts as well, when did Sakura know that?

Sakura jumps back, waiting for Saya to make her next move. She was panting and small bead of sweat falling from her face. Her stamina needed work, but the adrenaline wasn't going away, she could probably go for a bit more.

That was the difference between each girl, Sakura may not have the stamina, but she did know how to deal some damage. Saya had the stamina, but she couldn't read her opponent as well as she should be. It's in this regard that she dropped her stance for now, with no Sharingan, it was pointless.

Getting up, Saya then smirks, "You're not as bad as I thought."

She then lunges at Sakura, but feints a step from the left to the right and attempts to roundhouse kick the girl. Sakura takes the hit, but grabs the girls leg. Saya smirks and twists her body to perform another kick. Sakura already aware of it, grabs the other leg.

Sakura uses the last of her strength to throw Saya down to the ground and with good timing, slams down on her. She then places the Uchiha into a full nelson and smirks, "Better than you thought, Saya."

Saya growls, using her remaining energy to fight back the full nelson. She succeeds by forcing a kick from behind to Sakura's back, causing the girl to yelp and release her prisoner. The two then fall down and pant, bodies sore to the brim.

Pant "You're," pant, "quite," pant, "strong."

"You're," pant, "not bad," pant, "yourself."

The two pant and whatever anger they had for each other has dissipated. Saya keeps panting, but slowly eases her breathing and heart rate, "Were you… were you just riling me up?" She deduced.

"Yeah… I'm sorry… but, I had… I had to see if you were genuine. It's true what I've said and I don't apologize… but I wanted to make sure you… I wanted to make sure you really… meant it."

Saya then sniffs, "I'm such a mess," she laments. She bites back a sob. Why was she so emotional? Why did she have to be the way she is! It's not fair! She's not normal and she can't ever be normal! Why was she trying! "I'm such a mess… I can't… I can't do anything right."

Sakura then crawls over and rubs Saya's head, "There… there… this team isn't normal… by any means… but we just have to make it work. Please, don't cry. We can… start over?" Why did this feel like deja vu? First Naruto and now Sakura? Why did they care so much?

When she blurted that out loud, Sakura responds with a smile, "It's because we don't want you to be alone anymore… Naruto… I know I said some awful stuff to him… but he means well and knows you probably better than I do… I idolized you, but I want us to be friends… I want us all to be friends. Listen, we both know it'll be a while for you to get used to us, but… we'll be behind you, every step of the way."

"… I… thanks, I guess."

"Let me patch us up," Sakura offers tenderly. Saya only nods.

It would be another hour before Naruto arrives and to his surprise, he sees Saya and Sakura just laying on the floor. They looked bruised! What the Hell happened to them! He rushes to them and sees Sakura opens her eyes groggily, before properly giving herself some time to wake up, "Hm? Oh, hi Naruto."

"Hi? Just a 'hi!' What the Hell happened to you two? Who did this to you both?"

"Just shut up, idiot," Saya grumpily snaps, "we sparred is all. You're too loud."

He harrumphs and plops down, "It looks to me you both were trying to kill each other!"

Sakura nervously laughs, "Oh we wouldn't do that, right Saya?" She notices Saya nod and then go back to sleep. At least one of them can still act the same… even she couldn't understand Saya and they were both girls! She always thought girls could understand one another, but even in this case, it wasn't so clear cut.

Kakashi then arrived, thirty minutes after Naruto already did and smiles, "Well, it looks like you two had a good sparring match! It's a shame I'm going to have to make you guys suffer even more; come on, we have missions to do! And this time, it's Mr. Ishinomori! He needs one of us to pose for his manga and I just referred us to do so!"

They all collectively groan.

–

Despite the rather boring mission, it did leave Naruto amused.

It turns out the manga-ka was actually someone Naruto used to read as a kid. He went absolutely ballistic over the guy! He even ran back to his apartment and back to Mr. Ishinomori's house to get his manga signed by the man!

Of course, the author happily obliged and wrote to the boy, "To my big fan! Always remember to henshin and fight the big fight! - Ishinomori."

Naruto gladly posed for the man.

It was later in the afternoon that they all bid Ishinomori farewell. Naruto held his manga close to him and even ignored the minor teasing he got from Sakura. She called him a nerd for liking superhero manga, but he just laughed it off.

Kakashi wasn't really all that interested in the manga as he kept his eyes on his lovely book. Sakura did ask him what that book was about, but Kakashi brushed it off by saying it was meant for adults only. It kind of left her miffed at being brushed away like that.

When they went to the Hokage Tower, Naruto gulped, he didn't talk to the old man yet. He didn't hope the old man held a grudge from yesterday. Kakashi, rubbed the boys head as he noticed the anxious vibes rolling from the boy.

"Don't worry, Naruto, I don't think Lord Hokage took insult to you. Just relax." Kakashi assures him and he nods slowly.

Kakashi opens the doors and bows, "Forgive me for the intrusion, Lord Hokage, but Team Seven is here to report that the mission has been a success. Mr. Ishinomori was delighted and paid us double the amount."

A nod passes Hiruzen who looks pleased, "Excellent. It seems my good friend Shotaro, despite being an old man like me, still has the heart of gold for any excellent work done to him. I take it you want another mission?" Hiruzen then glances over at Naruto, who stays bashful. He doesn't even make eye contact with his surrogate grandfather. Perhaps yesterday did more to hurt Naruto than he realized.

"That is correct," Kakashi confirms, "but I think my team is ready for a C-Rank."

This shocks the team – was he serious! Naruto beams happily, finally! He can show his worth! Saya smirks, she too feeling she can show she wasn't meant for these mediocre tasks. She then winces when Sakura pinches her. It was Sakura's way of telling Saya not to get full of herself. She merely huffs, but acquiesces. Sakura still feels ambivalent to the idea, but she trusts her sensei and his judgement; if he thought they were ready, then she shouldn't let him down! Her eyes glisten in determination.

Hiruzen stares at the team and inhales from his smoke pipe, "Say I did allow you all to do a C-Rank, what makes this different from yesterday?" He tests them.

This time Naruto yet again speaks up, "Because, old man, we're different from yesterday!" he simply states with confidence. "Yeah, I was rude and bratty, but I believe we can work together to surpass your expectations and succeed in our mission! We all talked and agreed we need to change for the better! I'm not just some kid anymore, Old Man! This time, Naruto Uzumaki is ready for anything you can dish out!"

His confidence, his big smile, and his thumbs up – it reminded Kakashi too much of his sensei. He hides a small smile, 'This kid really is like his father. More his mother, but does have his father's unbridled confidence.'

Sarutobi thinks the same way and thinks to himself, 'Minato, Kushina, you both would be proud of him. He learned his lesson and took the time to better himself. Granted, it was overnight and I don't expect it to be immediate, but looking at him now… it's like you two never left.'

Saya then steps up, "I agree with this idiot, Lord Hokage. I… We can do this. I'm not letting this team down and I'm sure they won't let me down."

Sakura nods, "Yeah! I'm going to make sure they don't tire themselves out! I… I'm not going to standby and let them do the work! I'm going to help as much as I can!"

No one can underestimate the amount of pride Kakashi felt for his team. This was it. There first acceptance of each other! He felt like he made a good choice in passing them! At first, he was worried about the way things would go. He has been watching them from afar, from their arguments and to even Naruto spilling out his secret to Saya. He even watched the two girls go at it! He was ready to just send them back, but no – and he was happy to give them another chance – they worked their differences out!

This was it. Team Seven was real!

"Alright. I see you all trust each other. Fine. I will let you all have a C-Rank mission."

He then smiles at the team and presses a button on his intercom, "Send the client in."

He hears his secretary comply and the doors open. The team all turn around and they all look away in disgust.

The man burps, "What the Hell? I expected super strong ninja! Not some brats that look like they can't even tie their own shoe laces!" He takes a swig from his flask and burps once more.

"The name's Tazuna! Just take me back to the Land of Waves and everything will be super, got it!"


End file.
